“Can Machines Love?” WCC central committee moderator addresses the question
“Can Machines Love?” WCC central committee moderator addresses the question
GDF
Tue, 08/18/2026 - 15:52
In a two-part interview with Christian Peschken, Geneva correspondent for EWTN Germany, World Council of Churches (WCC) central committee moderator Bishop Prof. Dr Heinrich Bedford-Strohm reflects on the ethical, political, and spiritual challenges posed by artificial intelligence.
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Photo: EWTN
The interviews appeared on EWTN and CNA Deutsch. The first interview, entitled “ Can Machines Love? Faith, AI, and the Future of Humanity, ” leads to an even deeper discussion in the second installment, entitled “ The Church's Answer to Artificial Intelligence. ”
The conversations explore who should govern AI, why democratic oversight and ethical accountability are essential, whether AI can ever participate in spiritual life, and what message of hope Christianity offers in a rapidly changing technological world.
Bedford-Strohm also reflects on the shared commitment of the WCC and the Vatican to uphold human dignity as the guiding principle for the development and use of AI.
“ Who controls the data and power…
