A church in Switzerland has installed an AI-powered hologram of Jesus Christ to take confessions as part of an art project called 'Deus in Machina' (God in a Machine). St Peter's Church in Lucerne is using the digital avatar to interact with worshippers, who voice their concerns and questions to receive responses from the computer-generated face of Jesus.
The AI, developed by computer scientists and theologians from the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts, is trained on the New Testament and religious content found online. It can speak 100 languages and animates the face of Jesus in sync with computer-generated speech. Visitors sit in a confessional booth and speak through a grate to a screen displaying the avatar.
At least two-thirds of participants reported having a 'spiritual' experience after speaking with AI Jesus. One worshipper told DW: 'I was surprised, it was so easy, and though it's a machine, it gave me so much advice.' Another visitor asked about breaking the 'spiral of violence' and received the answer: 'through prayer and not seeking retribution.'
However, some visitors have criticised the advice as 'generic' and dismissed the installation as 'a gimmick'. The bot originally used OpenAI's ChatGPT-4o but was switched for the public version due to 'open data protection issues'. The creators tested it to ensure its theological position aligns with St Peter's Chapel on key issues.
Marco Schmid, a theologian at St Peter's Chapel, said: 'AI fascinates us. But it also has its limits and raises ethical questions.' While the installation is temporary, the chapel suggests similar chatbots could one day take on some pastoral responsibilities.
