Pastors, AI Is Here: 3 Questions You Should Be Asking

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Artificial intelligence. These two words evoke a sense of robotic futures and apocalyptic hellscapes where technocratic forces composed of corporations and governments control our lives and deaths. This evocation was actually the feature, not a bug, of the decision by John McCarthy to utilize a sensationalistic umbrella term to cover a group of various related but distinct technologies at the Dartmouth Conference of 1956. The term stuck, even as the technological advances it pointed to have evolved at different rates.

We as a society are already swimming in algorithms. Today, whenever we are prompted to do something on an electronic device, it is more often than not a prompt that originated from machine learning rather than the specific intentions of another human being. This has led to the belief—or at least, the practice—that algorithms help people to have better experiences, such as on social media or when using their banking services.

Ewa Luger explains that while it is hard to agree on any solid definition of AI, “when we use the term, we are describing the capacity of a computational system, be that a digital computer or a robot, to perform the particular tasks one might commonly expect of a human or other intelligent being.” It is its “intelligence” that is both a promise and peril for society, and perhaps especially for the church.

See our entire series of articles providing thoughtful engagement of AI.

Already, AI impacts our world at large, as well as small segments within that world, such as the local church. This impact will be at least as great as the internet and email were. So as we consider AI in light of ministry, its present and future, I suggest three conversations pastors should have not only with stakeholders of your ministry team but also their congregations at large. Pastors, I believe this will help you move people away from McCarthy’s sensationalism to a more thoughtful approach—and prevent you from any unnecessary surprises. I believe it will also help smooth the anxiety that Gloo/Barna find occurs among believers.

1. Should we use AI—and if so, how?

In 2023, ChatGPT—under the guise of a middle-aged man on a monitor—led a forty-minute worship service in Fürth, Germany, as part of the biannual Deutscher Evangelischer Kirchentag. The AI pastor and his preaching was conceived by Jonas Simmerlein from the University of Vienna. By all accounts, it was unexpectedly not weird. This may seem a bridge too far for anything other than an experiment—at least, based on today’s technology. Tomorrow is another matter.

There is already a temptation among pastors to “borrow” sermons from other pastors (plagiarism) or to reach for sensational yet inaccurate illustrations (misinformation). These temptations are hardly new, but they are arguably stronger today in our world of easy information access. They are further exacerbated by the growing expectation that pastors are specialists in a dozen areas including rhetoric and oratory. AI will increase these temptations by making “new” sermon content available to pastors in minutes instead of hours.

When discussions of future tech arise, someone often quotes the famous line from Jurassic Park, delivered perfectly by Jeff Goldblum: Just because humans can create something doesn’t mean they should. This is merely an echo of the meaning of the story of the Tower of Babel in Genesis 11. A closer reading of the first chapters in Genesis tells us our Creator understood humans can and would create—the ability to make technology is part of our divine design. Simply put, Babel is about our humanity, not our technology, even as Cain and Abel’s sacrifice was about their faithfulness, not their type of offering.

All of this raises questions about how, when, where, and why pastors should use AI in their ministries, as well as our own sense of what it means for a pastor to work under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.

2. What are the possibilities (and perils) of AI today?

One value of AI today is that users can employ AI to speed up rudimentary tasks and save time. If you are a solo or bivocational pastor, there is a proliferation of shortcuts already here (and more on the horizon) that can essentially provide you with a virtual assistant—better known as a copilot. A great place to learn about these types of narrow AI uses is on your favorite ministry blogs and X. Gloo and Barna suggests various ways for churches to use AI today, which can include creating targeted outreach ministries, offering virtual assistance, event planning, and resourcing discipleship groups.

Using two current examples, we can begin exploring the possibilities and perils of AI.

1. Midjourney

AI has already transformed one area of my ministry: the creation of artwork for presentation slides.

First visuals began with overhead projectors. Then came presentation software with full-color slides. Adding visuals to a sermon or teaching time was invaluable. When I was a pastor, though, it felt like most of my sermon prep time was spent scouring the internet for just the right picture to make my point. I never regretted it, as a picture is worth a thousand words.

That totally changed for me in 2023 when I discovered Midjourney, one of the new generative AIs. Now, whenever I need to put together a presentation (which is all the time), I tell Midjourney what I’m imagining and it “creates” it for me in a few minutes.

Even though Midjourney sounds wonderful, it has not come without significant criticism. Since Midjourney can’t think—like a human, at least for now and perhaps never—what it does is not “create.” Instead, using deep learning, Midjourney mimics (or some would say, “steals”) the art of other human artists to assemble an image based on my prompts. Is this the same as asking ChatGPT to write us a paper for school? (I don’t think so.) Is this the same as asking ChatGPT to write our sermons? (Again, I don’t think so.)

But even if Midjourney can “create” art, and ChatGPT can “create” a sermon, should we use them to do so?

One of the problems is GIGO (Garbage In, Garbage Out). In the early days of computers, this meant that if one put in the wrong number in an equation, or made an error in code, the final product would be nonsense. In order for today’s deep learning to occur, data scientists must train AIs on large amounts of data—a percentage of which is “garbage.” If I ask Midjourney to create an image, having some “garbage” in the design likely won’t matter (and an image featuring a six-fingered person can be humorous, also). Having some garbage in my sermon arguments and applications, though, is a whole ‘nother matter.

2. Perplexity

Everything you have just read was written by me, Douglas, a “real” human being. At this point in 2025, though, readers can’t always guess whether it was me who wrote this. If I had asked AI to create this essay, it would have taken a few minutes for what is taking me several hours to write and a couple of days to edit and polish. I’d like to believe my version is better—that it was a labor of love. Today? Yes. Tomorrow? Well, that remains to be seen.

Instead of asking AI to write this blog for me, I did ask Perplexity AI this question: “What are the three most important things a pastor needs to know about artificial intelligence?” Perplexity answered:

AI can significantly speed up administrative tasks to give pastors more time for interpersonal ministry and personal study time.
AI can help pastors bridge cross-cultural divides that will expand their ministry’s outreach.
AI can research topics and themes in biblical literature and provide ideas as well as lay out sermons.

While these three are undoubtedly true, and you can try it yourself at Perplexity.ai, the problem with this list is that Perplexity merely mashed up (though helpfully cited) five other blogs of varying quality written to answer this question. In this situation, AI sped up my time but only by a slightly greater margin than a standard search engine search would have. It certainly didn’t provide me with any new information, thus falling into a type of GIGO trap. This is the AI of today—but not the AI of tomorrow.

3. What are the possibilities (and perils) of AI tomorrow?

Even as AI has a few accessible and powerful uses for pastors today, the field of AI is evolving incredibly fast. If we think about the technological shocks to society since the 1960s, shocks that are possibly accelerating, we should brace now for the impact of the next few years.

I can’t slow down technology proliferation for you, but I can suggest three types of conversations to have with your congregation that I believe will help you navigate the growth of AI in the years to come.

1. Transparency

Many people are still hesitant about AI, for good and bad reasons. Many church attendees do not want their church to use AI. This is unfortunate. It feels like a similar cultural reaction to the use of email or websites.

To whatever degree you use AI in your pastoral ministry, I believe it healthiest to be open and transparent about your usage. Better said, make a point to bring it up with your people (who are sensitive to the situation). Not only does this help to prevent any surprises (or false accusations), it also helps your people to see the value in AI in whatever way you chose to engage this tech. Over time, this should help to decrease any fears that those in your congregation may have—and also encourage them to talk with you openly when they struggle with technology.

2. Boundaries

Share proactively your family’s tech boundaries with other people in your ministry.

For pastors, it is common to share boundaries of morality, time, and family, for example. This is fine, but in the twenty-first century, technology has become a significant portion of our lives; and even more for our kids (many of whom have already used AI, even if you haven’t). For example, I would much more likely let my tweens use Midjourney than TikTok.

When you talk boundaries, go beyond the all-too-common example of the smartphone. After all, “boundaries” is an everyday way to talk about theological ethics.

3. Teaching

In many churches, the only time technology comes up in the pulpit is as a negative illustration, such as highlighting the dangers of smartphones. In contrast, consider devoting an adult elective or one sermon at least every two years to technology.

If you do consider this, don’t make it a caricature and spend the whole time critiquing smartphones. Instead, consider how technology “peacefully coexists” with humans throughout the Bible.

Teaching on AI won’t be easy, due to stereotypes and lack of obvious references in the Bible, but it is similar to special topics such as healthy living, happiness/fulfillment, and protection of innocent life that tend to be mentioned in the Bible obliquely more than directly. This is also a chance to help your people begin to think biblically about how Christians should relate to rapidly forthcoming technology (especially humanoid robots).

Conclusion

As AI continues to evolve, its role in ministry will only grow more complex. Pastors and church leaders must engage in thoughtful conversations about how to use AI ethically and effectively. By prioritizing transparency, setting clear boundaries, and actively teaching on the intersection of faith and technology, the church can navigate this new frontier with wisdom and integrity.