Christianity grapples with the rise of an AI Jesus

[marmar]

Christianity grapples with the rise of an AI Jesus
How AI and podcasts are reviving “ancient heresies” and colliding with American Christianity online

By Russell Payne
Staff Reporter
Published December 27, 2025 6:30AM (EST)


(Salon) Earlier in December, podcaster Joe Rogan suggested that Jesus Christ might return in the form of an artificial intelligence. While this moment garnered attention online and in the press, it’s actually just the tip of the iceberg in terms of the effect that AI is having on religious belief in highly online corners of American society.

....(snip)....

The response to the clip online was largely mockery or criticism of Rogan for his cozy relationship with tech oligarchs, like billionaires Elon Musk and Peter Thiel. But the notion of an AI Jesus is not as fringe as it might seem.

Robert Geraci, a professor of religious studies at Knox College who has authored multiple books on technology and religion, told Salon in an interview that religious beliefs that incorporate AI are becoming increasingly mainstream.

“The apocalyptic AI mindset is now present in our culture in a way that someone who might be currently or formerly religious can now rely on that as a kind of groundwork for putting their thoughts together, for putting a worldview together,” Geraci said.

On one level, AI Jesuses — there are many — are already here. There is no shortage of websites or apps that offer access to a large language model that offers some sort of spiritual advice based on Christian teachings. Even the Catholic Church has experimented with AI Jesus, with a Swiss church in Lucerne experimenting with a Jesus-like chatbot that was set up to speak with churchgoers in a confessional-style setting. ...................(more)

https://www.salon.com/2025/12/27/christianity-grapples-with-the-rise-of-an-ai-jesus/

[ret5hd]

1. wow...created in our own image!

what could go wrong?

[multigraincracker]

2. 98% of Western Religions are stuck with one major problem.

Authority. It’s built in.

[Ferrets are Cool]

3. Don't forget misogyny.

Misogyny. Misogyny is the hatred of, contempt for, or prejudice against women or girls. It can also include an aversion to women, bias against women or a belief that men are better than women.

[multigraincracker]

4. Most religions give men authority over women.

Words separate. That’s what they do. Yet words are only symbols, they are not the thing. The real world is gray, not black and white.

[Hey Joe]

5. Sure, let's make religion even less believable

It’s like combining two fairy tales into one.
I’m sure it will be a great success. Especially for the evangelical Christians, who will believe any happy horseshit that gives them the warm fuzzies.