Boy, the tension of trying to stay human in a technological society sometimes feels like it's going to rip all my limbs off in different directions. We moved out to the country in rural central Washington state in order to live more sustainably and ironically ended up more dependent on electronics and technology for human connection (and mere entertainment) than ever! We have recently moved back to a city (Anchorage, Alaska) to be closer to family and opportunities. As a songwriter/poet I have often wondered how to share my creativity... if not online, where? I'm hoping for more in-person opportunities here in a larger community and quickly realizing how much more energy that requires than plopping down in front of the computer on my butt. Lord, help me!
Well done! There's a large perspective waiting to be embraced reading this. Having studied ANE and 2nd Temple culture and lit, this is right on target. The interplay between tech and the supernatural is more evident in our age. That's both a good thing and a terrifying thing. Our guide through is Christ and Christ only. Thanks for the hard work!
This is very well done, and AI's connection to the "animated statues" is, I think, spot on. Salient point that, although the technology may ultimately have mundane operational aspects does not diminish the fact that the impulse to create them to begin aligns with the impulse of the sorcerer ("my will be done") acting at the instigation of fallen spirits. It is no surprise, then, that our technologies these days are yet another manifestation of "the World" and answerable to the Prince of this World (and its love of Self), rather than being a reflection of the Kingdom of Heaven (and its love of God).
This is very well argued, especially your points on the deep ambiguities of technology one finds in the Pentateuch, and then on through the Bible. Congrats on a careful biblical-theological meditation on the perils of tech as it meets hubris.
But still, I have to underline (with a grin) something you already know: that Epimetheus means afterthought, and the Greeks of course stressed that this Titan tended to act rashly, and regretted it later. And then you go and use him for your moniker! My point would be that it’s still a grave mistake to start talking of the demonic in AI. And not because I think AI *isn’t* going to bring suffering and delusion, idolatries and manias that will make internet addiction look like watered-down beer. No, I think we’re in deep trouble, or at least, tens of millions of us are primed for deep trouble.
Rather, I think that engaging the language of the “demonic” in relation to this tech is not going to serve as a warning to those now threatened, but rather will only prod them to further engage with what they hope are sentient beings in the machine. In part because the kids just aren’t afraid of demons. Demons to them means “spiritual beings”—and once you admit, as an educated man, that this is “demonic”, you are now fanning the fire you should hope to smother.
Think of the cultural context in which your discourse will be quoted. This is not Isaiah’s Judah. It’s not even the Christian 1950s West.
Do you believe malign spiritual beings are determining this or that AI output? If so, speak of the demonic. If not, adopt the approach an exorcist would if faced with a person suffering schizophrenia whose parents requested his help.
I’ve wrangled with Rod Dreher on this in his threads, but he isn’t accepting my arguments. (Honestly I suspect he’s writing and moving too fast to slow down and *weigh* my arguments.) That’s fine. Up to him. Still, I offer my two cents here. The Epimetheus in you should think this through more before accepting to use this fraught term “demon”. Imho.
Kingsnorth is certainly writing some very worthwhile things on the Machine and civilization, but I'm not sure I've read him specifically on AI and the demonic. Or at least perhaps not the piece Dreher links today. (Is it true Kingsnorth's working on a book-length treatment of the Machine?)
So *The Wizard of Oz* approach seems to me far wiser, for reasons stated. If you’re interested, Rod wrote up your essay on his blog today, and I’m there in the comments making trouble.
To your point, clearly the language of "AI demonic" can lead to problems, including (a) the notion that malign spiritual beings are determining this or that AI output, or that (b) LLMs have some type of quasi-sentience.
Clicking over to Kingsnorth's piece, I now realize I read it on his Substack. I thought both yourself and Rod Dreher were referring to a different piece.
Yes, Paul's piece is one of the best on this question--the hardest to refute.
Just read through the contents page of your book, and it looks superb. Very glad you dug in and decided to pursue this question further. *Cyborgs* will be one of the handful of titles I pick up when I visit my father in the US in June. (I live in Taiwan, and no longer ship books here, as I've now two shipments that never landed.)
One of my recent attempts to lay out the problem of AI in human terms is here. It's rather basic in ways, but I've used this approach, the "parable", as a means of getting certain points across to students here in Asia:
Microsoft says its AI will act as spyware recording everything we do on our computers. Apples computers will have AI. It’s being shoved in our faces all at once. Are there ways to disable it? Thank you for this thorough and thoughtful piece.
In our tradition Cain repents which is why G-d protects him. He becomes a wanderer to learn what it was like to be a shepherd like his brother, to not feel connected to the land. His entire line at the end of seven generations are all kids named for him and his brother working together - Yuval, tuval and tuval-kain. He becomes the keeper of his brothers legacy and goes on to produce the technologies most associated with shepherds.
On top of that one can see the city that he builds is not for him- but for his son. And it has some interesting parallels to the cities of refuge that G-d commands Moses and the Children of Israel later to set up. Cain did not understand death and the murder can be read as unintentional in this sense.
I think it's also important what he names his son- Chanoch, which means both to educate and dedicate. Through his actions he is teaching his son about but he is also dedicating him to this mission of reconciliation. This is why Naamah the last descendant of Cain can marry Noah the last descendant of Seth. The two lines are finally redeemed and thought able to restart the world as a new Adam and Eve (though Noah would fall again)
Another comment: i went to do my lectionary reading for the day, and there was this verse (Joel 2:14). I had noted it and felt something was strange about it in past readings, but when you put it together, that we are the image God has made, and blesses us (as opposed to the images we fallen humans make, and sacrifice to), it made more sense:
"Who knows if He will turn and relent, And leave a blessing behind Him-- A grain offering and a drink offering For the Lord your God?"
I should have checked how long it was before starting this on a busy morning! But having read it, i had one thought. People are often loath to attribute spiritual powers to physical objects, even though throughout human history, idols etc have always been human made (the golden calf was claimed otherwise, but i assume that was CYA on Aaron's part). But one exception people are willing to make are Ouija boards - even skeptics are semi onboard that this mass produced "toy" has effects that verge into their definition of spiritual. Our problem is that we have been disenchanted, and want to only see the world as mechanistic, cause=result. But we still use words like synergy, or attraction, that show that our heart still embraces mystery, and spiritual reality even on the most basic level. Thank you for the thoughtful reading and summation of where i believe we are at right now.
Boy, the tension of trying to stay human in a technological society sometimes feels like it's going to rip all my limbs off in different directions. We moved out to the country in rural central Washington state in order to live more sustainably and ironically ended up more dependent on electronics and technology for human connection (and mere entertainment) than ever! We have recently moved back to a city (Anchorage, Alaska) to be closer to family and opportunities. As a songwriter/poet I have often wondered how to share my creativity... if not online, where? I'm hoping for more in-person opportunities here in a larger community and quickly realizing how much more energy that requires than plopping down in front of the computer on my butt. Lord, help me!
Good morning from Italy. This is one of the longest and most interesting pieces I have ever read. Something adding to your claim may be also found here, in a statement from WEF's ideologue Dr Yuval Harari > https://twitter.com/Don_Virus_1/status/1516329044291239936?t=K3uaar6T7fosM0_clLjK8w&s=08 - Babel spirit in plain sight.
Harari is a talking nightmare. Only in this century could such a person be called "a philosopher". The WEF's squeaky little Satan.
The most comprehensive and succinct survey of this topic. I'm saving and sharing this.
Well done! There's a large perspective waiting to be embraced reading this. Having studied ANE and 2nd Temple culture and lit, this is right on target. The interplay between tech and the supernatural is more evident in our age. That's both a good thing and a terrifying thing. Our guide through is Christ and Christ only. Thanks for the hard work!
This is very well done, and AI's connection to the "animated statues" is, I think, spot on. Salient point that, although the technology may ultimately have mundane operational aspects does not diminish the fact that the impulse to create them to begin aligns with the impulse of the sorcerer ("my will be done") acting at the instigation of fallen spirits. It is no surprise, then, that our technologies these days are yet another manifestation of "the World" and answerable to the Prince of this World (and its love of Self), rather than being a reflection of the Kingdom of Heaven (and its love of God).
This should be a graduate class or an entire seminar. ♥️🙏🏻
Excellent comment. I just subscribed to you.
This is very well argued, especially your points on the deep ambiguities of technology one finds in the Pentateuch, and then on through the Bible. Congrats on a careful biblical-theological meditation on the perils of tech as it meets hubris.
But still, I have to underline (with a grin) something you already know: that Epimetheus means afterthought, and the Greeks of course stressed that this Titan tended to act rashly, and regretted it later. And then you go and use him for your moniker! My point would be that it’s still a grave mistake to start talking of the demonic in AI. And not because I think AI *isn’t* going to bring suffering and delusion, idolatries and manias that will make internet addiction look like watered-down beer. No, I think we’re in deep trouble, or at least, tens of millions of us are primed for deep trouble.
Rather, I think that engaging the language of the “demonic” in relation to this tech is not going to serve as a warning to those now threatened, but rather will only prod them to further engage with what they hope are sentient beings in the machine. In part because the kids just aren’t afraid of demons. Demons to them means “spiritual beings”—and once you admit, as an educated man, that this is “demonic”, you are now fanning the fire you should hope to smother.
Think of the cultural context in which your discourse will be quoted. This is not Isaiah’s Judah. It’s not even the Christian 1950s West.
Do you believe malign spiritual beings are determining this or that AI output? If so, speak of the demonic. If not, adopt the approach an exorcist would if faced with a person suffering schizophrenia whose parents requested his help.
I’ve wrangled with Rod Dreher on this in his threads, but he isn’t accepting my arguments. (Honestly I suspect he’s writing and moving too fast to slow down and *weigh* my arguments.) That’s fine. Up to him. Still, I offer my two cents here. The Epimetheus in you should think this through more before accepting to use this fraught term “demon”. Imho.
Kingsnorth is certainly writing some very worthwhile things on the Machine and civilization, but I'm not sure I've read him specifically on AI and the demonic. Or at least perhaps not the piece Dreher links today. (Is it true Kingsnorth's working on a book-length treatment of the Machine?)
So *The Wizard of Oz* approach seems to me far wiser, for reasons stated. If you’re interested, Rod wrote up your essay on his blog today, and I’m there in the comments making trouble.
Thank you Eric.
If you want to read Kingsnorth's entire piece, here is a link: https://www.touchstonemag.com/archives/article.php?id=36-06-029-f&readcode=10996
To your point, clearly the language of "AI demonic" can lead to problems, including (a) the notion that malign spiritual beings are determining this or that AI output, or that (b) LLMs have some type of quasi-sentience.
In my recent book "Are We All Cyborgs Now?" (https://www.amazon.com/Are-All-Cyborgs-Now-Reclaiming/dp/B0DDKYLNP4/) I explain the problems with both (a) and (b), while also expanding the notion of the demonic as outlined in this article.
Clicking over to Kingsnorth's piece, I now realize I read it on his Substack. I thought both yourself and Rod Dreher were referring to a different piece.
Yes, Paul's piece is one of the best on this question--the hardest to refute.
Just read through the contents page of your book, and it looks superb. Very glad you dug in and decided to pursue this question further. *Cyborgs* will be one of the handful of titles I pick up when I visit my father in the US in June. (I live in Taiwan, and no longer ship books here, as I've now two shipments that never landed.)
One of my recent attempts to lay out the problem of AI in human terms is here. It's rather basic in ways, but I've used this approach, the "parable", as a means of getting certain points across to students here in Asia:
https://ericmader.substack.com/p/deepseek-poetry-is-a-scam-but-of
Microsoft says its AI will act as spyware recording everything we do on our computers. Apples computers will have AI. It’s being shoved in our faces all at once. Are there ways to disable it? Thank you for this thorough and thoughtful piece.
excellent work Robin...fine article indeed!
I'm going to push back a bit.
In our tradition Cain repents which is why G-d protects him. He becomes a wanderer to learn what it was like to be a shepherd like his brother, to not feel connected to the land. His entire line at the end of seven generations are all kids named for him and his brother working together - Yuval, tuval and tuval-kain. He becomes the keeper of his brothers legacy and goes on to produce the technologies most associated with shepherds.
On top of that one can see the city that he builds is not for him- but for his son. And it has some interesting parallels to the cities of refuge that G-d commands Moses and the Children of Israel later to set up. Cain did not understand death and the murder can be read as unintentional in this sense.
I think it's also important what he names his son- Chanoch, which means both to educate and dedicate. Through his actions he is teaching his son about but he is also dedicating him to this mission of reconciliation. This is why Naamah the last descendant of Cain can marry Noah the last descendant of Seth. The two lines are finally redeemed and thought able to restart the world as a new Adam and Eve (though Noah would fall again)
Much more than Cain's city, the Ark is a recreation of Eden. Of one family with all the animals gathered and being cared for....
Great article! Thank you!
Another comment: i went to do my lectionary reading for the day, and there was this verse (Joel 2:14). I had noted it and felt something was strange about it in past readings, but when you put it together, that we are the image God has made, and blesses us (as opposed to the images we fallen humans make, and sacrifice to), it made more sense:
"Who knows if He will turn and relent, And leave a blessing behind Him-- A grain offering and a drink offering For the Lord your God?"
I should have checked how long it was before starting this on a busy morning! But having read it, i had one thought. People are often loath to attribute spiritual powers to physical objects, even though throughout human history, idols etc have always been human made (the golden calf was claimed otherwise, but i assume that was CYA on Aaron's part). But one exception people are willing to make are Ouija boards - even skeptics are semi onboard that this mass produced "toy" has effects that verge into their definition of spiritual. Our problem is that we have been disenchanted, and want to only see the world as mechanistic, cause=result. But we still use words like synergy, or attraction, that show that our heart still embraces mystery, and spiritual reality even on the most basic level. Thank you for the thoughtful reading and summation of where i believe we are at right now.