A church in Switzerland has introduced "AI Jesus," a temporary art installation that allows visitors to seek spiritual guidance and offer confessions through artificial intelligence.
The experiment, dubbed "Deus in Machina," was launched by St. Peter's Chapel in Lucerne, Switzerland, to explore the intersection of technology and spirituality, Vice reported.
Swiss church has an "AI Jesus" hologram taking "confession"! pic.twitter.com/LKc6dzHX5t
— Jesse Lee Peterson (@JLPtalk) November 21, 2024
The installation originally ran from Aug. 23 to Oct. 20, but continues in limited events through November. It allows users to engage with a digital Jesus programmed with theological knowledge and fluent in 100 languages.
Visitors interact with AI Jesus in a confessional booth which contains a screen displaying a digital likeness of Christ. Before beginning, users are warned not to disclose personal information.
AI being introduced into religious spaces has sparked controversy, with some questioning the ethics behind it. Many have reported meaningful spiritual experiences, while others dismiss the initiative as gimmicky and generic, as reported by Vice.
Professor Peter Kirchschläger has openly questioned the ethics of using an AI Jesus, arguing that machines lack the moral compass necessary to navigate religious situations.
"We should be careful when it comes to faith, pastoral care, when finding meaning in religion," Kirchschläger told Vice. "That's an area where we humans are actually vastly superior to machines, so we should do these things ourselves."
Meanwhile, theologian Marco Schmid, who led the project, spoke out on the backlash, stating the goal was to provoke dialogue about technology in religion and not to replace human clergy.
"What we're doing here is an experiment," Schmid told the outlet. "We wanted to launch the discussion by letting people have a very concrete experience with AI. That way, we have a foundation for talking about it and discussing it with one another."
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