Update: September 1, 2024
I put together a talk for Dallas Theological Seminary’s faculty workshop and later recorded it. I hope this is helpful to those looking for resources!
Original post: June 19, 2024
Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been around in many forms for decades, but since the public launch of ChatGPT in November 2022, “generative AI” has exploded both in terms of the development of new tools and in the discussion around AI and humanity. There are several good books and many excellent articles on AI, but rather than write a general account of AI and faith, below is my attempt to create a set of statements and applications directed at a specific field—theological education—where there is much concern that generative AI will bring ruin. The statements begins with some general ideas of about education and technology and then narrows into specific issues introduced in the first statement. The first draft had only the individual statements, but I was encouraged to use a format such as “affirmations and denials” which I modified to be “we believe, and yet, therefore.” The idea is to affirm a general principle, to recognize its limits, and then provide concrete direction. This is far from exhaustive, but I hope provides a starting point for consideration and discussion. (note: header image generated with DALL-E)
Theological Education Overview
- We believe that theological education involves ancient, timeless practices of information acquisition, theological maturation, and spiritual formation.
- And yet, we also believe that theological education must equip current and future ministry leaders to operate within the cultural situation to which God has called them.
- Therefore, our institutions, programs, classes, and assignments should be optimized for both deep change in the totality of a person and for addressing the concerns of the present age.
Technology as God-given Good in a Sinful World
- We believe that the ability to create and use technology is a good gift from our creator God and a fundamental part of human existence now and in the eschaton.
- And yet, we also believe that the evil present in the world and within us affects the development of technology and influences the ends to which it is put.
- Therefore, regarding the power of technology, we strive to honor the brilliance of God’s image in each person, while being attentive to the reality of our sinful state.
Technology as Formative and Deformative
- We believe that technology is one of the means by which we transform the world as it is into the world as it should be, fulfilling God’s command to cultivate and have dominion over creation.
- And yet, we acknowledge that tools and devices also form us as we use them, such as the blisters we receive from shovels and the new sense of space we receive from GPS routing.
- Therefore, we will be attentive to not only the morally good and evil uses of any technology, but also to its more subtle formative power in reshaping our body and mind as well as our expectations and desires.
Artificial Intelligence in Theological Education
- We believe that generative artificial intelligence tools provide incredible opportunities for creativity and learning within the context of theological education.
- And yet, we also believe that the human tendency to intentionally misuse and be unintentionally formed by technology is ever present, however noble the intentions.
- Therefore, we will seek to explore the unknown ways AI will alter how we conceive of time and creativity, persons and communities, and work and rest.
AI Generation and Educational Ethics
- We believe that presenting the output of generative AI as one’s own work without acknowledgment is ethically wrong.
- And yet, we also believe that an equal or greater concern is allowing students to use generative AI in ways that impede their formation as whole human persons.
- Therefore, we will create and maintain clear policies around the ethical use and citation of AI in the context of theological education including examples for professors and students.
AI Generation and Information Acquisition
- We believe that theological education may sometimes involve recitation of facts such as historical events and the words of holy scripture.
- And yet, we recognize the goal is never regurgitation itself but creating a deep wellspring of truth that shapes the student’s soul and opens them to the Spirit’s guidance.
- Therefore, theological education must continue include a place for memorization that is designed to saturate the student’s mind with what is true, good, and beautiful.
AI Generation and Theological Summarization
- We believe that generative AI tools have an uncanny capacity for summarizing and synthesizing complex thoughts and ideas.
- And yet we recognize that overreliance on AI summarization may inhibit student from developing their own God-given creativity and making a unique contribution to the body of Christ.
- Therefore, we must adjust the educational process to continue developing students with the internal capacity to understand, evaluate, and create theological language in reliance on the Spirit and within an orthodox frame.
AI Generation and Formational Assignments
- We believe that professors can create learning activities and assignments that incorporate generative AI as part of the experience.
- And yet, we also believe that theological education experiences should be varied and complex such that not all assignments should lend themselves toward AI.
- Therefore, we will design assignments where generative AI would not likely be usable such as working with a group, revising a paper with direction, spiritual disciplines with reflection, practices of counseling, and live preaching.
AI Conversation Systems and Human Relationships
- We believe that conversational AI systems may be helpful for forms of asynchronous learning or simulating likely conversations with people in a student’s future care.
- And yet, we recognize that despite our intentions, our tendency is to adopt new technology in ways that replace and diminish important aspects of our humanity.
- Therefore, we will always clearly disclose any use of AI chatbots, while also continuing to affirm that theological education and the Christian life should take place within the context of a physically present spiritual community.
Special thanks to Adam Graber for help feedback on many of these statements.