AI should help pastors, not replace them

I’m subscribed to several AI-for-churches mailing lists because I want to understand what pastors are being told right now. This weekend, I got an email that stopped me. The message was simple: ministry was busy, Sunday is coming, you still don’t have a sermon, and AI can write it for you. Full manuscript. Edit it to sound like you. Problem solved. I understand why that message works. Pastors are tired. Most people only see the sermon on Sunday. They don’t see the hospital visit, the counseling appointment, the late-night text, the staff issue, the funeral prep, the volunteer problem, the family responsibilities, and the blank page waiting at the end of all of it. So when someone says, “It’s not your fault,” that lands. And when someone says, “Let AI write it,” that sounds like relief. But that is exactly where I think we need to be careful. I believe pastors should use better tools. We already use technology for giving, slides, livestreaming, calendars, email, planning, and volunteer…