Christians trust AI as spiritual authority, study shows

Research Barna published on Tuesday found that practicing Christians were more likely to trust artificial intelligence’s spiritual growth advice than were nonpracticing Christians. Roughly 48% of practicing Christians told researchers that they trusted AI’s advice about how they could grow spiritually. Only about 38% of nonpracticing Christians said the same. Practicing Christians were also more likely than nonpracticing Christians to say that AI’s advice on spiritual matters was just as trustworthy as that of a pastor.

Do practicing Christians trust AI more generally, or just with spiritual matters? Practicing Christians were more likely to trust in AI’s advice about how to find a sense of purpose in life, build relationships, and experience better mental and physical well-being than were nonpracticing Christians, the study found. Meanwhile, pastors largely distrust AI on such matters, compared to both practicing and nonpracticing Christians.

So Christians aren’t concerned about AI at all? The data about Christians’ personal willingness to trust AI coexist with data showing that supermajorities of American Christians express concerns about AI, Barna’s research showed. Roughly 83% of practicing Christians worry that AI could misinterpret Scripture, 65% express concern that it could begin to act as a replacement for God, and 73% worry that people could lose their religious faith altogether because of AI.

Dig deeper: Read Flynn Evans’ column in WORLD Opinions about resisting the tech-bro plutocracy.