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Artificial Intelligence

This guide provides information about artificial intelligence for faculty and students.

Articles on AI from the United Methodist Church

This collection of United Methodist Church‑affiliated articles and blog posts focus on artificial intelligence in the context of church life, pastoral ministry, worship, teaching, and work:

1. Let’s Not Miss Our Moment: 10 Concerns about AI and the Church
Publication Date: May 30, 2025
Author: Blake Davis
Summary: Outlines ten common concerns and offers perspective on risks, ethics, and practical use of AI in church settings. [UMC Discipleship] 

2. Rethinking the Model: AI, Clergy, and Co‑creation in the Church
Author: Patrick Scriven
Publication Date: May 15, 2025
Summary: Explores how AI can be used as a co‑creative tool alongside clergy and laity rather than replacing human roles in worship and ministry [United Methodist Insight]

3. Work and AI
Publication Date: February 1, 2024
Author: Scott Hughes
Summary: Encourages church leaders to leverage AI tools such as ChatGPT and Perplexity to support ministry and administration [UMC Discipleship]

4. Artificial intelligence and church
Author: Jim Patterson
Publication Date: November 21, 2023
Summary: Describes a UMC congregation in Austin, Texas, that conducted an AI‑generated worship service including sermon and original song—then reflects on the human element that was missing. [United Methodist News Service]

5. Artificial intelligence and your spiritual journey: Compass 118
Publication Date: September 20, 2023
Author: Rev. Jay Cooper
Summary: A Compass podcast episode and notes exploring how AI intersects with personal spirituality, including experiments like AI Jesus and usage in church programming [The United Methodist Church]

6. Digital Parish: Using A.I. to become a digital ministry content machine
Publication Date: 2023
Author: Rev. Ryan Dunn
Summary: Discusses how pastors can use AI to transform sermons into blogs, videos, podcasts, social posts, and more—effectively becoming a “content machine” for digital ministry [resourceumc.org]

7. Divine Algorithms: AI Jesus
Publication Date: 2023
Author: Rev. Nathan Webb
Summary: Examines the ethical and theological implications of “AI Jesus,” an AI persona trained to act as Jesus Christ and engage users on Twitch [The United Methodist Church]