Watch: AI-Generated Jesus At Swiss Church's Confession Booth Is Attracting Controversy

A Swiss Catholic church installed an AI Jesus in a confessional to interact with visitors. The installation was a two-month project in religion, technology and art titled “Deus in Machina,” which means "god from the machine"; referring to a plot device used in Greek and Roman plays, introducing a god to resolve an impossible problem or conflict facing the characters.

An AI-Generated Jesus At A Swiss Church

“Many people came to talk with him,” said chapel theologian Marco Schmid to Today. “There were young people, older people — people really talked with him in a serious way.”

The experiment met with an overwhelming 900 conversations from visitors recorded with many visiting more than once. The project leaders found that the experiment was largely a success and that visitors who came out of the booth were moved or deep in thought, and found it easy to use, according to the AP. The new platform gave many individuals a space where they could feel more like themselves and closer to God.

Many Faiths

Surprisingly, it was not just the Christians who came to confess. The leaders noticed visits in numbers from people from diverse religious groups- agnostics, atheists, Muslims, Buddhists and Taoists. It is beautiful to see religion serving its purpose of bringing people closer and spreading peace. 

Backlash

The stringent backlash that the experiment faced makes one question two things: Are the religious sentiments of people really hurt or are the exploiters at the top of the religion-as-business chain feeling threatened?

A Bishop said the move was "not sacramental" and "truly just sacrilege" in a TikTok post last month. Many believers also think that as of current age, AI cannot authentically absolve human sins. Some feel that it misleads one away from God.

The new generation, contrary to the assumption older generations made, is actually getting more religious and spiritual as we proceed to the half of this decade. Every era is marked by a revolutionary change in religion and we cannot be intransigent. Change has always been a constant and will continue to do so. However, the decree to which a change is necessary always remains the subject of debate.