Khadiyatoulah Fall, Professor Emeritus Researcher, University of Quebec at Chicoutimi, Honorary Member of the CERII Chair, Emeritus Member of the CELAT Interuniversity Center

A few weeks ago, several Senegalese media outlets—including Seneweb—published one of my reflections on artificial intelligence and Islam. I dedicated this work to the memory of my brother, the late Imam Tahirou Fall of Rufisque, who passed away a few months ago. Before his death, while he was still in good health, he encouraged me to question the ethical upheavals that AI is imposing on the Muslim world. His advice guided me to revisit the foundations of Islamic ethics and assess their relevance in the face of the rapid expansion of these technologies.

Following this first contribution, many friends, colleagues, and readers invited me to broaden the analysis beyond the Islamic framework alone, by examining how the other great revealed religions—Judaism and Christianity—are also confronting this digital revolution. This request seemed fair and fruitful to me: it reminds us that the challenges of AI, while rooted in particular cultural and theological contexts, cut across all religious traditions and call for responses that are both rooted and open to dialogue.

This text is a first attempt to answer this call. It does not claim to be exhaustive or to provide definitive mastery of a rapidly evolving subject. Rather, it is intended as an invitation to think together, to combine religious wisdom and scientific rigor to construct ethical benchmarks capable of shedding light on the ongoing digital revolution.

The emergence of artificial intelligence (AI) in religious spaces is no longer a distant future: it is already appearing in mosques, churches, and synagogues, where apps answer worshippers' questions, algorithms guide sacred readings, and digital platforms disseminate sermons, fatwas, and theological interpretations. This phenomenon is silently transforming religious practices and religious authority. But it also raises an urgent question: how can monotheistic traditions—Judaism, Christianity, and Islam—enter this new digital age without betraying their ethics or letting technology decide for them?

A Silent Spiritual Revolution

AI is already disrupting traditional mediations between believers and religious authorities. Chatbots offer explanations of the Quran, the Torah, or the Bible; generative applications compose sermons; social platforms shape spaces where religious discourse becomes decentered and fragmented. While these tools promote access to knowledge, they also risk short-circuiting scholarly mediations, simplifying complex theological debates, and exposing the faithful to biased or manipulated interpretations.

Major religions have begun to respond. The Vatican launched the Rome Call for AI Ethics in 2020 , calling for technology that respects human dignity and universal moral values. In the Muslim world, several councils of ulama are already issuing fatwas governing the use of AI—for example, on predicting halal, automating zakat, or digital religious education. In Judaism, halakhic debates are multiplying around the permissible and prohibited uses of AI: virtual assistants for Talmud study, prayer recommendation algorithms, and automated devices for Shabbat rituals. Rabbinic authorities are discussing the implications of “intelligent machinery” for spiritual intention ( kavanah ) and the sanctification of time. Some voices emphasize the need for halakhic vigilance while exploring how technology can support the study, accessibility, and transmission of Jewish tradition.

The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has also positioned itself in this spirit. By bringing together its member states, it promotes comprehensive ethical reflection on emerging technologies, including AI, and supports normative frameworks aimed at reconciling technological innovation and Islamic values. Its initiatives call for caution regarding the ideological and commercial uses of algorithms, while encouraging scientific cooperation to develop digital tools aligned with a shared ethic. The OIC thus emerges as a collective actor capable of combining moral vigilance and active participation in international debates on technological governance.

Ethics and Governance of Religious Platforms

Behind these initiatives lies a central issue: governance. Who controls the algorithms that disseminate religious discourse? Commercial platforms? States? Religious institutions? Without collective reflection, we risk the privatization of sacred content by digital giants or, worse, ideological manipulation by unscrupulous actors. UNESCO and the OECD are already warning of the need for a global ethical framework, but religions must take ownership of these debates so as not to be mere spectators.

Added to this reflection on governance is an often-overlooked requirement: the articulation between faith and scientific reason. Monotheistic traditions have long engaged in dialogue with rational knowledge—from Maimonides to Averroes, from Thomas Aquinas to contemporary Muslim thinkers. However, in the face of AI, this dialogue must be revived to avoid a double pitfall: giving in to technological fascination without critical thinking, or, conversely, rejecting scientific data as soon as they appear to clash with a worldview. The denial of established facts—whether they are elements of biology, climatology, or the technical realities of AI—undermines the moral credibility of religions and deprives them of a constructive voice in the ethical regulation of technologies.

AI could also be a tool for living together: better translating texts, opening spaces for intercultural dialogue, and combating hate speech. But it can just as radicalize community bubbles, fuel religious disinformation, and weaken social bonds.

A call for creative vigilance

This is not about banning or demonizing. Monotheistic traditions have often been able to integrate printing, radio, television, or the internet. But AI requires greater discernment, as it automates the production of discourse and invisibly shapes authority. It forces religions to strengthen their educational responsibility and critical thinking, while partnering with scientific research to develop ethical, inclusive, and culturally grounded tools.

Finally, it would be naive to ignore a worrying phenomenon: the proliferation of religious sects in the digital space, often hyperconnected, aggressive in their proselytizing, and capable of exploiting AI to recruit, manipulate, and imprison vulnerable minds. The risk is no longer just theological; it is becoming social and political.

More broadly, it is urgent that religions engage in frank dialogue with science to address the challenges of AI. The temptation to substitute belief for rational analysis undermines their ability to propose a credible ethic. Judaism, Christianity, and Islam have all, at key moments in their history, valued intelligence, study, and research as paths to spiritual elevation. Rediscovering this critical spirit—without renouncing transcendence—is the only way to respond to the seductions of technology and the ideologies of scientific denial.

This is why a true common front must be organized. Religious authorities, intellectuals, technology developers, and public decision-makers must overcome reflexes of mutual mistrust to build international and interreligious governance of AI applied to religion. We must demand transparency of algorithms, develop reliable and open theological corpora, support the training of the faithful in digital critical thinking, and impose rules to protect against sectarian manipulation.

As AI prepares to become a new player in spiritual life, it would be irresponsible to let the market, ideologues, or extremists occupy this space alone. This is a decisive moment: harness AI to serve the quest for meaning, dialogue, and social peace—or endure an era of doctrinal confusion and amplified religious divisions.