Rev. Dr. Christopher Benek

Tech can accelerate tasks.
It doesn't show love to your people.

Pastoral authority doesn’t disappear in an AI age — but it must be clarified.

What Church Leaders Get Wrong About Artificial Intelligence | Christopher Benek Artificial intelligence is not a distant future challenge for the Church but a present pastoral one, because before congregants ever enter the sanctuary they have already been formed—often invisibly—by the algorithms that shape what they see, trust, and believe.

“What Church Leaders Get Wrong About Artificial Intelligence” — AI is already shaping how people trust, learn, and decide before they ever enter a sanctuary, so the Church’s task is discernment:

AI already shapes what people see, trust, and choose — long before Sunday morning.

If the Church cares about formation, it cannot ignore AI.

Church leaders keep asking whether AI is good or bad.

That’s the wrong question.

AI isn’t just a tool problem.
It’s a formation problem.

What church leaders get wrong about artificial intelligence The real question is whether AI will remain a servant or quietly become an authority

My most recent article published in The Christian Post:

"What Church Leaders Get Wrong About Artificial Intelligence"

For a fuller theological and pastoral framework, see the Church Leader’s Guide to Artificial Intelligence - available on Amazon & Audible.

www.christianpost.com/voices/what-...

I was recently quoted in the Miami Herald about my work exploring the relationship between faith, technology, and community here in South Florida — you can read the article here:

Benedictine monastery, Santa Maria de Montserrat, Spain

When Empires Fall: What Asimov and Howard Thurman Teach Us About the Future of Humanity | Christopher Benek Asimov’s Foundation and Howard Thurman’s Jesus and the Disinherited tell a surprisingly similar story: empires may rise and collapse, but renewal comes from the faithful and imaginative remnant at the margins. When we choose love over domination, we become the agents of a future in which humanit...

In my new article, I reflect on what Asimov and Howard Thurman can teach us about faith, technology, and hope in a changing world:

I am always impressed and encouraged, despite all the bickering in the world - how many people there are who consistently, genuinely and humbly seek dialogue, understanding and betterment.

It gives me hope.

Benedictine monastery, Santa Maria de Montserrat, Spain

Benedictine monastery, Santa Maria de Montserrat, Spain

What’s one spiritual habit you want to grow or establish this year?

"God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change." - Psalm 46:1-2

What’s your biggest spiritual goal for this year?

"Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever disobeys the Son will not see life, but must endure God’s wrath." - John 3:36

"I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship." - Romans 12:1