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READ THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: https://bibleinayearonline.com/august-oyb/?version=63&startmmdd=0101
August 3, 2026
PAULINE.ORG: A Catholic Primer on Artificial Intelligence
LIFESITENEWS.COM ANALYSIS: AI is weakening our capacity to think, understand, judge
SUBSTACK EXCERPT: AI, Its Promise and Its Peril
WWNN:
What kind of an impact will AI have, long-term? Especially if you
compare it to the massive consequences, all the social dislocation,
caused unintentionally by the printing press in the 16th century.
Rev. Philip Larrey: It will
be bigger. A lot bigger. Some very serious names in AI development have
argued that we need to shut AI research down right now—not slow it
down, but shut it down—claiming that the moment we achieve Artificial
General Intelligence (AGI) it will destroy every human being on the
planet. If some Luddite from Iowa said something that radical, you
wouldn’t pay any attention. But when a list of industry heavies say it,
it’s extremely sobering. Potentially, AI is very dangerous. It’s going
to take a lot of jobs from people. AGI will be autonomous and able to
function almost identically to a human being. Right now, the “narrow”
AI we have can do a wide variety of single things very well, like
playing chess or the game Go, or Jeopardy. Artificial General
Intelligence will interact with its environment in an autonomous way to
achieve results. This is similar to what actual human beings do, but
without a genuinely human character and consciousness.
WWNN: What will
AI do to the Catholic Church as a religious community? It seems it
could have a very disruptive effect on the whole idea of human identity
and destiny, the idea of the supernatural, and the reality of invisible
truths.
Rev. Philip Larrey: I don’t think we can know that yet. One excellent Catholic use of AI is “Magisterium AI,”
founded by Matthew Sanders. He lives in Quebec, and he's also the CEO
of Humanity 2.0, a very sound Catholic foundation. Magisterium AI helps
users understand Catholic doctrine. He trained the AI on official
Catholic teaching and documents, so it doesn’t present false
information. And he’s feeding it 200 documents a week. Therefore, I’m
optimistic. I think we’ll learn to use these AI tools to achieve good
goals. And if our goal is to be a committed faith community, these
tools will help us do that.
VIA GROK: Elon Musk’s near-term view of a world shaped by advanced AI centers on rapid intelligence surpassing, massive abundance via AI + robotics, optional work, diminishing relevance of money, and loss of human control—while acknowledging non-zero existential risks.
Key Predictions on Timelines and Capabilities Musk has repeatedly projected aggressive timelines in 2025–2026 interviews and statements:
Abundance,
Work, and the Economy The dominant positive scenario is an “age of
amazing abundance” in which anyone can have nearly anything they can
think of, driven by ubiquitous AI paired with humanoid robots (e.g.,
Tesla’s Optimus).
(Decrypt; Business Insider)
Musk has described this as the most likely outcome, assuming no major derailments such as global thermonuclear war.
Risks and Philosophical Stance
Musk continues to flag risks
(previously citing roughly 10–20% odds of catastrophic outcomes
involving advanced AI/robots) but argues the technology’s momentum is
unstoppable. He has said that even if a “stop button” existed, it
probably should not be pressed because the upside of abundance is so
large.
(Business Insider; Decrypt)
His preferred approach to safety emphasizes building AI that is maximally truth-seeking and curious, with good values that care about humanity prospering. He has also suggested leading AI labs should review one another’s frontier models before release.
Overall Framing
Musk presents a dual picture:
transformative material abundance and optional labor that could
redefine purpose and economics, alongside the realistic prospect that
superintelligent systems will outstrip human control. He frames the
near future (next 5–10 years) as a period of explosive progress that is
both exciting and irreversible, with the best path being to steer AI
toward curiosity, truth-seeking, and pro-human outcomes rather than
attempting to halt development. These views appear consistently across
recent interviews (notably with *The Economist* in July 2026) and his
public statements.
Ladder of Divine
Ascent excerpt: Step 8- "On Freedom from Anger and on Meekness"
Prayer request? Send an email to: [email protected]