Host Andrew Camp welcomes theologian and ethicist Michael Morelli to discuss artificial intelligence in relation to humanity, modernity, and the Christian table. Morelli defines today’s “AI” as machine learning and generative systems that process vast data, perform tasks, and simulate personality, while noting debate about true sentience. They address AI’s ubiquity, marketing that frames it as neutral, embedded biases in data and design, and the need for critical thinking and formation rather than shortcuts, especially in education. The conversation situates AI within late-modern acceleration, power, and influencer culture, alongside declining trust in institutions. Morelli contrasts AI’s dot-connecting with the sacramental and communal power of baptism and Eucharist, which reveal deeper reality and foster unlikely relationships, shaping everyday eating and hospitality. They close with food reflections and Morelli’s podcast and social links.

Michael Morelli is the Associate Professor of Theology & Ethics at Northwest College & Seminary and ACTS Seminaries. Both are affiliates of Trinity Western University. He’s also an adjunct professor of theology of at Trinity’s Religious Studies and Nursing Schools. He has a PhD in Theological Ethics from the University of Aberdeen, Scotland and is the author of Theology, Ethics, and Technology in the Work of Jacques Ellul and Paul Virilio: A Nascent Theological Tradition (Lexington Books) and editor of Desert, Wilderness, Wasteland, and Word: A New Essay By Jacques Ellul and Five Critical Engagements (Pickwick).

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The Table as a Foil for AI's Technology with Michael Morelli