Advancement in technology has opened up new ways of life for the current generation, how can the church evangelize in the age of AI? In the “North American Chinese Church Second Generation Pastoral Strategies Forum 2024”, Pastor Gideon Lee explored transhumanism, emphasizing that technology can become a medium to evangelize people and help them find a unique identity in the image of God.
Second Generation Pastoral Strategies in “I, Robot”
Organized by the Greater Los Angeles Chinese Strategy Alliance, the “North American Chinese Church Second Generation Pastoral Strategies Forum 2024” was streamed online on August 19. The organizers pointed out that the pioneers on the frontiers of technology are the young people, and how the youth are more inclined to grasp and utilize new tech. They are much more attracted to the technology than to evangelism. That is why, if we want to reach this generation, we cannot ignore AI or technology. The question, however, lies in how to convey the gospel message without conforming to the trends of the world.
In the first symposium of the forum, Pastor Gideon of Crosspoint Church (汇点教会) began with the topic “AI & New Technology and their Interlacement with Next Generation Ministries”, introducing several basic concepts of AI.
Pastor Gideon brought up I, Robot, a 1950 sci-fi novel written by American author Isaac Asimov, constituted by nine short stories. The book presented three fundamental laws of cyborgs: first, a cyborg may not harm humans or stand by while humans are being harmed; second, a cyborg must obey human commands unless the commands conflict with the first law; and third, as long as no violation of the first and second law occurs, a cyborg may protect itself.
This raises the question: will AI pose a threat to humans? If the goal of AI is merely to mimic human intelligence, the threat is limited; but if its goal is to surpass human intelligence, the threat is obvious.
Transhumanism and the Image of God
Pastor Gideon then introduced the concept of transhumanism, which states that human beings can enhance their humanity through self-evolution via technology.
John Searle, an American philosopher, designed the 'Chinese Room' experiment in 1980 to debunk an idea put forward by strong artificial intelligence (functionalism). The experiment asked participants to envision an English-only speaker in a closed room with a Chinese translation program book. When notes written in Chinese were sent into the room through a small opening, the person in the room could translate the words according to the program in the book and properly respond in Chinese, even though he knew no Chinese at all. Searle argues that this process gives the outside world a false impression that the person is proficient in Chinese, inferring the possibility that humans cannot become superhuman through self-evolution.
In the Age of Lying AIs, We Need the Gospel Even More
Humanity has a unique identity, Pastor Gideon proclaims, they have the image of God and are entrusted to govern everything in the world. When Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit, “super-human” became “post-human”, falling lower than where they originally were. This is why man needs to be reborn in Jesus Christ.
Why do people still need to study when AI is so prominent? Pastor Gideon used the example of music theory. Knowing music theory allows people to appreciate musical performances and to judge the correctness of the performance. That is why the church must preach to the next generation to keep them awake. As mentioned in 2 Timothy 3:13, “... evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived (ESV).”
Pastor Gideon emphasized that the false messages and images created by AI will deceive people, and this age of lies needs evangelism even more desperately. The gospel must not be discounted. Through evangelism and the gospel message, people can know themselves, and then know the technology. 2 Timothy 4:5 says, “As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry (ESV).” The race of technology is a marathon. If Christians can make good use of the nuances of technology, it will become a powerful medium to spread the gospel.
