Two United Methodist Church agencies are organizing an ecumenical summit examining how churches should engage with artificial intelligence, with hundreds expected to participate both online and in person.
UMC Discipleship Ministries and United Methodist Communications will host the third annual AI & Church Summit from Aug. 24-27 in Nashville, Tennessee, and virtually.
About 75 people representing several denominations are expected to attend in person, while more than 300 participants have registered for the online gathering.
C. Blake Davis, executive director of Marketing & Delivery at Discipleship Ministries and the agency’s lead on AI issues, told The Christian Post that this year’s theme centers on “human agency.”
Davis said the theme “reflects a question that is becoming increasingly urgent as AI develops: How do we ensure that human beings remain responsible participants in decisions affecting our work, relationships, communities and faith?”
“As AI becomes more integrated into our workplaces, communication, education and everyday lives as a tool with great potential for good and harm, the questions are becoming much larger than simply, ‘How can the church use AI?’” explained Davis.
“We’re intentionally bringing together a wide range of perspectives, including theologians, technology leaders, Indigenous voices and denominational leaders. The goal isn’t to arrive at a simplistic conclusion that AI is either good or bad. It’s to create space for informed, thoughtful and faithful discernment.”
The gathering began with participation from leaders of The Episcopal Church, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and the Presbyterian Church (USA), with the UMC joining last year. Hosting responsibilities rotate among denominations.
