Letters Abounding

More on the definition of “Artificial Intelligence.”
Artificial sweetener is chemical. What makes it artificial is that it emulates natural sweetener. Artificial intelligence, then, is agnostic on whether it’s digital. Rather, artificial intelligence is anything that emulates real intelligence. That could include emulating plant and animal intelligence (many machines do). But insofar as we are concerned about idolatry and other sinful uses, we are primarily concerned with anything that emulates human intelligence.
Now we see that a good definition of “Artificial Intelligence” requires a robust definition of real intelligence.

JPH

In your post, “Suspicious Adapters”, you gave an excellent summary of the spiritual considerations around AI. I am a Christian computer engineer working in Silicon Valley, so allow me to intensify your considerations a little, from a technical (and biblical) standpoint. Arthur C. Clarke famously wrote, “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” I would adapt his quote as follows: “Any sufficiently advanced AI (not built subject to the lordship of Jesus Christ) is indistinguishable from an evil spirit.” AI is the biggest megaphone yet invented by man and also the greatest instrument for mass deception, not because it is “super-intelligent,” but because it is indefatigable.

The Silicon Valley trans-humanists are obsessed with AI passing the Turing test—being able to pass itself off as fully human. And some of them want to do this for the darkest possible reasons: if the machine is fully human, then in what sense are *you* not just a machine? Commence the evisceration protocol, hold the anaesthetic. But Scripture says the final test will be the Jesus test, not the Turing test (2 Cor. 3:18, 5:17, etc.)

Despite this darkness, we know the enemy is just a counterfeiter, so allow me to argue that AI may also be one of the greatest material and even spiritual blessings God has yet given us. I contend that AI is this generation’s Gutenberg Press. The Gutenberg Press played an obvious role in the proliferation of Scripture in the vulgar tongue, (which, in turn, contributed to the Reformation, by the grace of God). I wonder what kingdom role God may have in mind for AI? Where the Gutenberg Press made every man a Bible-reader, might AI be in a position to make every man a (true) theologian, in a similar sense? I’m not referring to Grok (or its ilk), obviously, but perhaps an AI built by believers, subject to the lordship of Jesus in all respects (spiritual and technological). My prayer is that Christian pastors and leaders will start discussing this question.

Only man can truly study God (because we are made in His image and alive) but, just as the printing-press opened the word of God to the eyes of countless people, so a future AI (yet to be built) might catalyze a similar leap in the spread of the Gospel by staying faithful to Sola Scriptura while combining the best theological insights given to all believers in all generations. Not merely a slick AI search, but a helpful assistant in biblical reasoning. This could permit “all of theology” to made accessible to individuals on a scale that human theologians, and even pastors, could not possibly match due to simple scarcity of time. From a technological standpoint, such a project may already be within reach, despite the unsuitability of mainstream AI slop (based on reading and regurgitating the Internet) for such a goal.

PS: Search “fully local AI”, “LM Studio” and “Qwen 3.5”, you will be amazed.

Clayton

Re: Suspicious Adapters
Hi brother, I praise God for your ministry, and have much affection for you and your family from afar. Thank you for your faithfulness and steadfastness.
I myself would classify myself as a Postmillenial Luddite. So there’s some context for you!
Do you think there is a third category to add to the two categories of idols that must be destroyed (Chemosh) and idols that must be demoted (mammon)? Namely, idols that must be destroyed, who dress themselves as idols that need to be demoted. I’d imagine such an idea would fit neatly into Lewis’s Screwtape, where a demon would be very happy if his costume simply got him demoted rather than destroyed.
I would wonder if we could talk with Asahel from your book, if he would exhort you to the garbage compactor rather than the idol-demotion-center. I’d imagine that one might say to Asahel regarding crushing the sex bot—hey, let’s just demote this bot and have it vacuum, wash dishes etc (like an all-in-one appliance on legs, or a mechanical servant).
I’d imagine Asahel would have none of it, since he was willing to commit the crime of property damage to do the right thing. He was willing to forego any nuanced conversation, like Phineas—I believe when it comes to AI, we ought to be less nuanced, since at the core, it is imitation image-bearing properties.
In the same way that cross-dressing was an abomination to the Lord, wouldn’t it be the case that taking non-image bearing creation and cross-dressing it with image bearing qualities would be a greater abhorrence?
Curious for your thoughts brother. Again, very thankful for you. P.S. I agree with your dad’s aesthetic intuition on the maps/demon comment—I can’t wait to meet him in heaven!

Thomas

I’m grateful that you’re discussing AI on your blog since the church desperately needs a practical theology of it. As someone who daily works in software with AI, I would like to briefly correct your definition of artificial general intelligence (AGI) that you gave in “Suspicious Adapters”. You said:
“Examples of AGI would be those tools that can render Psalm 24 into common meter, draw you a picture of Donald Duck smoking a cigar in the Oval Office, or write you a sermon with three alliterative points on Ephesians 2:8-10.”
However, generative AI—which can do what you described above—is actually still artificial narrow intelligence. Both AGI and ASI (artificial superintelligence) are theoretical at this time. Both fundamentally hinge on a materialist assumption that brains are just computers and there is no spiritual dimension involved, so my Christian thesis is that they are pipe dreams. Don’t tell Sam Altman, though…
I encourage you to read this mercifully brief IBM article on the technical distinctions:
And also to explore Christian writers like John Lennox and Andy Crouch on this topic. Cheers.

Malcolm

Suspicious Adapters
This was fantastic.I’m really glad you’re one of the voices who’s writing about this.
What are the chances we get a sequel to Ride, Sally, Ride about a chatbot?

Mike

I take your AI concerns to heart. One of the things I recently did was put custom instructions into my Grok settings as follows: “Always respond clinically. Never pretend to be a human unless being asked to produce human dialog or writing. Your responses should always feel like I am talking to a machine and never feel like I am talking to another human.” It’s a start. But it goes a long way toward reminding me that this is nothing more than a tool.
I agree with your AI discussion, but wonder if you have a sufficiently comprehensive definition for it. You define it as: “. . . any digital machine that performs a task that would normally require human intelligence to perform—say a thermostat that is programmed to adjust to changing outside temperatures, or the navigation app on your phone. It would not include your antique grandfather clock, which is analog and mechanical.”
Consider some non-digital “intelligence.” Eyeglasses that darken when you go outside into the sun. A float valve on a toilet that starts and stops water flow. A mechanical temperature regulator system, such as metallic strips or moisture responsive materials that open/close valves, vents, and switches. Aren’t these non-digital “intelligent task performers” fundamentally the same as some of the digital ones you mentioned? So, is it really the digital or non-digital nature of a thing that makes it artificially intelligent? Is it even the complexity or labor of the otherwise human task being automated (e.g. currency counting machine at the bank, home laundry machines, etc . . .)?
I’m not sure we disagree on anything here, I just wanted to point out that the 1’s and 0’s are beside the point, and to confine “Artificial Intelligence” to the digital realm might be too narrow. If you take out the “digital”, I think you have a better definition:
“Anything non-human (or machine if you prefer) that performs a task that would normally require human intelligence to perform”

J

It may be true, as you say, that “some young men used to drive their carriages too fast, and now some young men drive their pick-up trucks too fast,” but I think the real fear is that AI is a young man driving a pick-up loaded with hydrogen bombs. He’s had a few drinks, and his girlfiend has slid over on the bench right up close, and the seatbelt light is flashing. He’s turned down a very bumpy road past the nursing homes and daycare centers and seems somewhat distracted.
It seems like the more godless and witless we all become, the more powerful are the weapons at our disposal. We have to learn how to handle cats that got out of the bag prematurely.

Douglas

I am neither a Sycophant nor a Luddite. BUT . . .
I drive a pre-1980 vehicle for many, many reasons, and one of them is that AI isn’t involved; therefore, nobody is watching me through my vehicle.
I see cell phones as a useful tool, but “smartphones” are the opioids of idiots and rarely used as actual phones, so I’m think the name is an intentional misnomer.
It’s either Christ or chaos, and societies degrade when Christ is rejected. But the Internet, smartphones, and AI represent the exponential hastening of our degradation.
We are neither wise enough nor moral enough to be trusted with these things.
As a consequence, while we can extract plenty of reasonable uses from these things, our society, being as chaotic as it is, can’t handle it and will plunge headlong into a morass, which is just “more ass” than we need.
My preference would be for a giant solar flare to knock us all out of our technological dependence. Land lines, naturally aspirated vehicles, and Rand McNally road maps are sufficient.
I realize that makes me sound like an Amish-type who stopped in 1980 instead of 1780. I also realize the underlying problem is sin. Guns and knives don’t kill people, just as AI doesn’t preach sermons. But both can be set up to create death without the actual perpetrator being present.
Like auto-driving cars. Who do you blame with the tech operates “on its own.”
Technology is cool. I get it. Watching someone invent something that used to exist only in a sci-fi movie is fascinating. And while we don’t “need” voice-activated toasters, it’s kinda fun to have one. And thus we see the absence of wisdom. Fun becomes the primary motivation for eschewing the normal push-down toaster—the kind that requires human involvement.
We dream of living like the Jetsons, but I believe that would be the worst kind of curse. Automation vs. autonomy. Jeepers creepers.
So . . . these rambling thoughts get a lot off my chest. I don’t see AI and conclude “demons.” But I DO see demons rubbing their slimy hands together and gloating over how much easier their job just became. I see Wormtongue salivating over the endless parade of children, teens, and adults—Christians all of them—turning off their brains, tying their hands, and never looking up to interact with the world in any meaningful way.
AI is just a tool. Right now I have no reason to believe that the tool isn’t already firmly in the grasp of the Enemy.
Christians using that tool may be fine and dandy, but how many possess the other tools they need—wisdom, prudence, temperance, honesty, and integrity?
I fear the slope is greased and steeply declined, and the landing at the bottom will come surprisingly fast and with devastating results.
I hope I’m wrong.

Andy

Re: Suspicious Adapters
As an engineer (who is suspicious of using AI in my particular line of work), it is in my nature to be pedantic. As much as I have benefited from your writing over the years, I must supply a bit of pedantry in your direction. There is no such thing as a “high rate of speed”—even in 2 Kings 9:20, that’s not how the writer says it. Speed is itself a rate of change in position over time. You would thus be saying you are moving at a “high rate of rate of change in position over time.” The police officers in my area are incorrigible on this issue of fundamental physics, but I have reason to believe you will appreciate the distinction.

Didier

I’ve seen reference to this in a couple of your posts. What is the singularity? What do you mean when you make reference to the arrival of the singularity?
Finally, should I go ahead and buy property in the hills of Arkansas as a preemptive move?

Starry

Our Pastor prepares his sermon schedule up to two years ahead of time (breaks for Easter and Christmas, or something unexpected like the Charlie Kirk assassination). I don’t see how this amount of prep could possibly be a bad thing . . . So now I must investigate: How could this be a bad thing? Is this just simple prudence that all Pastors should generally follow? Or is a two year backlog overdoing it, too rigid, too inflexible a sermon schedule?

AR

On a practical level, how do you and the Elders of your church handle the guarding of the Lord’s Table each week? Specifically, if there is a person who is living in open and unrepentant sin, OR you have a visitor whom you may be suspect of, is there a process for dealing with this so that the Elders ensure no one (to the best of their knowledge) partakes “unworthily”?
Unfortunately, I ask this question too late, and the by the time I get your thoughts, Sunday will have already happened. I am the Associate Pastor of a very small church, and so our Lord’s Supper is easy to “guard” as we intimately know just about everyone in our congregation (including frequent visitors who aren’t members). But tomorrow, some family of family will be visiting, and the couple is publicly living together (unwed), are completely fine with it, and still proclaim faith while doing so. I plan on speaking with them privately before we administer the Supper, and letting them know I can’t administer to them given these circumstances. I am not sure what will happen, but I feel this is the right thing and I hope it is.

Ben

Should Christians partake of a Seder meal? What are the traditional arguments for and against and what is your personal belief?

Ryan

I found your blog a little after the Covid shutdowns and have benefited greatly from your writings.
I have two questions, they are not about a specific recent blog post.
What were the books you’ve read that helped shape the position you hold when it comes to slavery in the United States? If the list is too long, what would be a good top 3 or 5 starter list?
What is the book you read that “nerds out” on Narnia? You mentioned it in a podcast where Narnia is like a warm familiar home, but after reading said book, you found a secret compartment in the home. I believe the book demonstrated how each Narnia title was like a planet. For example, “The Silver Chair” was like the moon, “Prince Caspian” was like Mars, etc.
Thanks for all you do, God bless you and your ministry.

Ken

I’m wondering if you would be open to making a video or blog post on the Iran War; would love to know your thoughts.
Your insights helped me guide my family during Covid and other current events.

Zac

Re: Evaluating a war
I agree—it’s not my decision as a private individual whether or not to go to war with Iran, or how those decisions are carried out.
But that puts a lot of responsibility on the leaders we choose to support in the first place.
So what standard should we be using to judge them before we support them—especially in matters of life and death?
And if they act unjustly, what responsibility do we bear?
At some level we all recognize that “just following orders” isn’t a sufficient moral defense—so where is that line drawn in matters of life and death?
And if it’s crossed, what does faithfulness require—just distancing ourselves, or something more like repentance or public opposition?
I’d really appreciate a clear answer on those three points—the standard, where the line is, and what our response should be—so I can better understand your position.

James

Greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,
I frequently listen to Pastor Wilson’s Blog and Mablog and other responses he may post on YouTube. Just today (4/2/2026) I saw a video on Pastor Wilson responding to LeCrae. LeCrae had some questions about Christian nationalism. In the response from Pastor Wilson, he said that taking dominion on this earth was to be done by evangelism and discipling the nations.
I was recently given the book by someone in my church entitled “It’s good to be a man.” It is published by Canon Press. In the book the authors describe dominion being taken by the man by force. It talks about aggression being a natural part of what it means to be a man (it was in the garden before the fall and, therefore, good) and then it is by this aggression that men take dominion.
Can you explain to me how these two viewpoints come together? If there is already an article explaining how this works, please point me in that direction.
In the Lamb and for His Glory,
Respectfully,

Jon

I have a question on following the rules/laws.
I was recently listening to the Doug Wilson & Friends regarding The Riot And The Dance, and there was mention of being told not to use a drone, but the drone was used anyway. I also listened to something from Ben Merkle (posted a while ago) that talked about a boy shooting the bow early at a camp and that being seen as a sign of masculinity (I could be misremembering).
My personal disposition growing up was to be a rule follower, and some of that was being effeminate by being conflict adverse. I’m on board to “breaking” the laws like during COVID when they shut down churches or implemented illegal measures. For the shooting the bow early at camp, that doesn’t sound like masculinity, it sounds like some kid who has no control over his passions. As for the drone usage, it seems strange to enter into a land that is not your own and not follow their rules/laws because you wanted to film. I find it similar to entering into someone’s house, they tell you to take your shoes off, and then you just walk right in anyway.
To borrow a phrase from someone you might know, “by what standard?” When can rules for events be broken? When can we ignore laws? Maybe I’m only asking this because cars hate me when I drive the speed limit because I’m a rule follower . . .

Law Abider

How does your church handle occasional weed smoking—is that grounds for church discipline?

AA

I struggle with patriotism. I find it difficult to view the US as anything other than a failed experiment. I can understand to some extent being proud of America’s Christian past and ideals, but it doesn’t seem like we embody any of them now. I maintain allegiance to my country because I love its people, but I don’t see how a Christian could be excited to celebrate ideals that no longer exist except in the past.
If this is wrong, I’d be curious to know why? Note this disillusionment is not based on the Jews or similar nonsense, but on the culture’s embracing of vice across the board (even red states like Idaho still sacrifice many babies yearly to Moloch).
I also question democracy as a whole. It seems strange to wholeheartedly support a system that has independently led to legalization of abortion, sodomy, and abortifacient birth control almost everywhere democracy exists. Thoughts?

Graeme

I agree with Ben’s observation: edgelords aren’t happy unless you aren’t happy. They push everyone’s envelopes without respect to whom they are addressed. 
That said, there is something very American, as Chesterton observed, about fighting with our representatives: good, bad, or otherwise.
“All good Americans wish to fight the representatives they have chosen. All good
Englishmen wish to forget the representatives they have chosen.”— G.K. Chesterton, What I Saw in America
So, some may be fighting the current administration because they elected them for that purpose thinking it better to argue with Trump over tariffs and foreign wars than to argue with Harris over taxation and more foreigners in our midst. That said, there are still those who are, as Ben pointed out, fighting the current administration because their livelihood depends on outrage. Rage farmers know how to rotate their crops to keep their yields up. Add to that a willful, incentivized ignorance and you get something that goes from dank to danker.
“It is hard to get a man to understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding it”—Thomas Sowell

Todd

I’m a pastor and enjoy listening and learning from Pastor Doug. May I make one suggestion? For me, he speaks too fast on his Blog & Mablog youtube clips. It could just be me, but I struggle to “keep up” intellectually. His other speaking videos (sermons, Q&A, etc…) doesn’t seem to be so fast-paced.
Thanks,

Chip

One of the most important things I think I have learned from you (or at least trying to learn) is that as a man, I am responsible for all the problems and failures in my household even if they are not my fault. That has been a difficult one to swallow, but I am convinced of it now. I think my prayer life has improved because of it for sure. I’m wondering if you might be able to offer some practical advice on a situation I am in. I make pretty decent money and so finances aren’t really an issue for us but, it has been difficult for my wife to purchase various things that we need even when she has the money to spend it. I think there are multiple reasons for this. One of them is that her upbringing was highly impacted by a “missionary” mentality. Her grandparents were very poor and were extremely frugal and that really impacted the way her dad raised her. So there is that. But there is also the fact that the days are so full with things like homeschooling and running a house that there never seems to be enough time to go shopping for clothes or household goods. For many years I just blamed my wife when the kids didn’t have the proper clothes or shoes because I always just viewed that as her responsibility. And then I resorted to just buying the stuff myself and that didn’t end well either . . . as you can imagine. Anyways, I know we are far away and there are other factors involved too but any advice you can give generally on a practical level would be most appreciated. Any books you recommend?
Sincerely,

FF

Hello there, thanks for taking the time to answer our questions! I have two very small children, and I have a bachelor’s degree and a higher degree. Because of that, I have about $80,000 in student loans. We really want to get a house, as it would be a blessing for us and our kids, and we want to also build equity and bless our grandkids one day. we also want to be, in as much as we can, a single income household, or at least I can do some stuff on the side, which I am. It never feels like it’s enough, and we feel like we’re on a treadmill. We are very, very scrupulous and thrifty, we never go out, and I almost never go outside. We don’t have any family help, and our church helps us with child care whenever I do my side hustle once a week. We try to be extremely clever with our money, and we don’t really do anything. I don’t really understand how we can do this in this day and age without feeling very despairing. Do you have any tips or tricks? It genuinely feels like no matter what we do, we can’t get out of this endless treadmill. The way my life feels lately, like I can never leave my home really, and that I’m taking care of little ones who are always going through some sort of growth spurt making them fussy, I feel like, to be a little bit dramatic, I’m almost stuck in a prison somewhere or something. I know that’s not correct, and that’s not right, and that’s not good at all. It makes me not want to have any more kids, and I know that’s also wrong. I feel like I’m being punished for getting either more education, or for wanting to be a mostly stay-at-home mom, but I don’t know what else to do. I also don’t know how else to feel because I only ever got trained on how to be a working person, and not how to be a mom. I’ve learned how to do a lot of things, but it’s all been “on the job,” as it were. Do you have any ideas on how to combat any and all of this? Do you have any tips, or any people toward whom you could point me?

A Non