Wired Word Lesson of the Week

The Wired Word

Topic for Sunday, December 7, 2025:

Pastors and Churches Are Using Artificial Intelligence: Since pastors and churches are increasingly turning to artificial intelligence (AI) to assist them with ministry and mission, this week we will focus on appropriate uses of technology, how we see and hear God's Word, and the church's identity as the body of Christ. We will also explore the ways in which human beings are superior to AI, and should never be replaced.

In the News

Individuals are encouraged to read the news below related to this topic before the December 7th bible study to be prepared for an engaging conversation:

Across the country, artificial intelligence (AI) is being used by pastors and churches to reach worshipers, write sermons, and facilitate prayer. AI is helping them to face the challenges of "shrinking staff, empty pews and growing online audiences," reports Axios. "But the practice raises new questions about who, or what, is guiding the flock."

Some AI-powered apps claim to help people to "text with Jesus" or "talk to the Bible." Other apps offer to create personalized prayers, assist people in confessing their sins, or provide religious advice to people struggling with decisions. "A new wave of apps is attempting to create a hotline to heaven," writes Chrissy Callahan in Today, "for users who are interested in strengthening their religious faith."

Pastors and churches are turning to these AI tools as many congregations struggle to survive. A record number of Americans -- 29% -- now say they are religiously unaffiliated, and approximately 15,000 churches across the country will probably close this year. In recent months, churches have been using chatbots to answer questions such as service times and event details. Some even use these online tools to share Scripture.

"Every church or house of worship is a business," says the Rev. Chris Hope, founder of Boston-based Hope Group. "There are absolutely opportunities to generate AI bots to evangelize." Hope Group is a consulting firm that helps churches use AI for scheduling, coordination of preaching engagements, and mission work.

A chatbot called "EpiscoBot," developed for the Episcopal Church, draws on church resources to respond to spiritual questions. Other AI apps analyze congregational data to customize church outreach and communication. And a growing number of pastors are using AI to assist them in creating sermons. The Rev. Louis Attles, an AME pastor in Pennsylvania, has created a chatbot named "Faith" that helps him to conduct research for his sermons.

Concerns are being raised, however, about AI that creates the impression that users are talking to a divine power or to clergy. The "Text with Jesus" app claims to help people with their spiritual journeys and "engage in enlightening conversations with Jesus Christ." The app also gives users the options to engage with other biblical characters, including Mary, Joseph, Judas Iscariot and Satan. Critics point out that no pastors were consulted during the development of the app.

When NBC's Anne Thompson used the app, she asked "Jesus" why bad things happen to good people. The response she received, according to Today: "Anne, my heart aches with yours when you see pain -- suffering entered the world because of brokenness and free will, not because God delights in harm."

Catholic apps such as "One Day Confess" claim that they can help users with confession and spiritual reflection, providing AI-guided responses based on the Bible. From the evangelical side, megachurch pastor Ron Carpenter of San Jose, California, has created an AI app promising "personalized interactions" with a bot version of himself. The cost: $49 per month.

Mark Graves, research director for a nonprofit called "AI and Faith," tells Axios that the apps are in their early phases. "I think the incentives are to get it out quickly and just see what happens," says Graves. "The risks are very high."

"Artificial intelligence (AI) has come a long way, but one thing it will never be able to do is replace the core functions of the church, which unites individual Christians together into the body of Christ," says Joshua Arnold, a senior writer at The Washington Stand. "Although it can be a useful tool in certain situations, AI lacks the one critical ingredient necessary for Christian growth and discipleship: a human soul that reflects the image of God."

Religious researcher Robert P. Jones has doubts about the "Text with Jesus" technology. "The challenge, of course, is that we have no idea what's under the hood there," he said to Today, "what's really creating the reality that then they present."

Pope Leo XIV is also concerned about the increasing use of AI in society. "It must not be forgotten that artificial intelligence functions as a tool for the good of human beings, not to diminish them, not to replace them," he recently said. Rabbi Daniel Bogard finds AI to be useful as a challenge to his thinking, but he has concerns. "I think the danger is always that we are losing sight of humanity and human connection."

The CEO of the company that developed "Text with Jesus" acknowledged the pushback, but said his goal is not to supplant real ministry. "AI can't replace lived faith, community or the human touch of ministry," he told FOX Business. "But it can help lower barriers and spark deeper curiosity."

More on this story can be found at this link:

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