Now we can build machines that are so intelligent we can even hold theological conversations with them. In fact, the chatbots of today can bring powerful arguments for the existence of God while conversing with them; as well as against it. They don't have their own opinion and can't have faith, but they have this one thing that troubles us: intelligence.
For a very long time we assumed that intelligence was a property of the soul, that it derived from that divine breath that God breathed into Adam when he gave him his soul. It was such a mysterious property that we simply assumed it came directly from God.
We thought this mainly because it appeared to be limited to the humankind, because we observed very little of it outside our own nature and that made us feel special—that we could think, reason, plan ahead and reflect on the things we learn. It was mainly our intelligence (and our perception of it) that made us think we are special, that we can fly high, beyond the earth itself and into the entire universe, conquer everything.
And here we are, about to be defeated by our own doing. There are now other things that are starting to match us for our intelligence and appear to be soon developing into something even better than us.
Like the builders of the Tower of Babel, we stand in awe of our creation—hoping it elevates us, yet trembling with fear it may surpass and enslave us.
Should we be afraid?
Fear and disbelief
If until now, every time we found ourselves in a situation that brought terror into our hearts, we kept our faith in God and trusted in him to hold our hands until we crossed that bridge that brought us fear, now terrible questions challenge our faith from its grounds.
The development of full artificial intelligence could spell the end of the human race. It would take off on its own and re-design itself at an ever-increasing rate. Humans, who are limited by slow biological evolution, couldn't compete, and would be superseded.
—Stephen Hawking
This idea, described here by Hawking is called Singularity. How can God exist if we can create intelligent entities? Aren't we, in fact, creating God?
And if we're capable of creation, doesn't that shatter the absolute basis of our belief?
How can all this be possible if God exists? Were we wrong to belive in him?
Intelligence as a Pattern
Artificial Intelligence is based on a pattern, a neural network that once discovered and put together, has led to the recent AI revolution. The 2024 Nobel Prize in Physics recognized pioneers like Geoffrey Hinton and John Hopfield for foundational work in neural networks, highlighting how these systems can autonomously identify patterns in data.
At the same time, we don't fully understand how this works, in other words, it's a discovery rather than an invention, not very dissimilar to electricity—we didn't invent it, we merely discovered its existence and found ways to put it to use.
If we're allowed an observation, despite this field being in its infancy, intelligence seems to be a pattern, something that emerges from arranging elements in a certain way. Learning and then using knowledge is a consequence of that arrangement, of that pattern.
The idea of pattern is a comfort, since it makes us realise intelligence doesn't stem directly from God's grace. To use the same example as above, it's just like electricity—one of the many wonderful linings that make the universe, one that we've just recently stumbled upon.
The moment we see this, the moment we realise we're not really creating intelligent entities by ourselves, and that, in fact, the AI runs on a pre-existing pattern that we're merely tapping into, then we can sit back and peacefully contemplate the beauty of this particular pattern of the divine.
Revelations and intelligence
All of a sudden, our doubt is appeased, the loudness of our questions decreases. All we needed was a little faith, all we needed was to understand how this faith is still possible.
And he said to them, “Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?” Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm.
—Matthew 8:26
It appears God chose means other than intelligence to communicate with us. He chose to reveal himself through the heart, not the mind, through channels that valued understanding at an allegorical level rather than a measurable transactionality. Perhaps because from where he stands, the reality is far too complex to explain, too daunting for us.
For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.—Isaiah 55:8-9
Intelligence and reason are not good tools to reach out to God, they're limited and may cause us doubt and anxiety. It's like trying to decide to love our children based on evolutionary arguments—that they may be better versions of us. Although it may be so, it's not why we love them. We can't love anyone or anything based on reasonable conclusions or calculations.
And that is another clue, that love plays a significant role in the universe that we otherwise tend to imagine as cold, silent and devoid of any emotion. One day, perhaps, we'll discover why.