Posted on 12/07/2025 9:13:56 PM PST by SeekAndFind
A majority of pastors are now using artificial intelligence to prepare their sermons, with ChatGPT and Grammarly reported as the top two AI tools, new survey data shows.
"ChatGPT is the most visible generative AI tool that can engage in human-like conversations and assist with a wide range of tasks, from answering questions to generating content," researchers wrote in "The 2025 State of AI in the Church Survey Report" prepared by AiForChurchLeaders.com and Exponential AI NEXT.
"As the most popular AI tool among church leaders (26%), ChatGPT is being used for applications such as sermon preparation, research, and crafting church communications. Its versatility and ease of use make it a powerful asset for streamlining ministry work and sparking creative ideas."
The data, based on responses from 594 pastors and church staff members, shows that church leaders are now more concerned about "the weighty ethical and practical considerations involved" in the use of AI as they continue their rapid embrace of the technology.
Nearly two-thirds of church leaders surveyed who prepare sermons say they use AI tools in their sermon writing process, the researchers note.
"This suggests that AI is quickly becoming a key tool for pastors in their weekly message preparation," they wrote.
Some 61% of pastors say they use AI weekly or daily, up from 43% in 2024. In that share, 25% report using AI daily.
"Overall, the survey depicts a church that is increasingly open to the ministry possibilities of artificial intelligence, while still grappling with the weighty ethical and practical considerations involved," researchers state. "Most churches seem to believe that AI can be beneficial if used as a tool, but not a replacement for human connection and spiritual discernment."
Some 11% of church leaders report using the AI-powered writing assistant Grammarly for tasks like "polishing emails, newsletters, blog posts, and other church communications." Another 9% said they use Microsoft Co-Pilot, an AI search engine developed by Microsoft, to conduct research, while 8% report using Google Gemini. Another 8% of the church leaders in the study report using Canva Magic Studio, an AI-driven set of design capabilities within the Canva design platform, to design "social media posts, event flyers, presentation slides, generative AI fill, and other visual design functions."
"While some may view this as a concerning trend, others likely see it as a way to enhance their research, writing efficiency, and creativity," researchers note. "As AI sermon writing tools continue to improve, it will be important for church leaders to find the right balance between leveraging AI's capabilities and maintaining their unique voice and spiritual insights."
About 30% of the leaders involved in the survey represent churches with fewer than 100 members, while about a quarter (24%) represent churches with between 100 and 249 members. Fourteen percent are leaders of churches with 250 to 499 members; 11% have 500 to 999 members; 14% have 1,000 to 4,999 members and 2% of the leaders are at churches with 5,000 to 9,999 members. Another 2% report more than 10,000 members.
"The demographics reveal a broad interest in AI across different leadership roles within the church, with a notable representation from Gen X and Millennials. This diversity suggests a wide acknowledgment of AI's relevance but also indicates the potential for generational divides in technology acceptance and usage," the report notes.
Around half (50%) of the leaders involved in the survey are either lead pastors or executive pastors. The top concerns they had about the use of AI in ministry are now: misinformation and the theological accuracy or alignment of AI-generated content; AI replacing or diminishing personal, spiritual guidance and the quality of human relationships within the church community; privacy and data security; and transparency and accountability.
Still, church leaders are optimistic about the use of AI in ministry and believe that, with the right training, they can overcome hurdles as they arise. Some 87% of pastors said they are willing to invest in AI education and training for themselves and their staff.
"To overcome known hurdles, church leaders will need to prioritize AI education and training for themselves and their staff. This could include attending workshops, partnering with AI experts, and investing in ministry-specific AI resources," researchers said. "Proactively addressing ethical considerations through the development of robust AI policies and frameworks will be critical to building trust and buy-in from congregations. By taking these steps, churches can position themselves to reap the benefits of AI while mitigating potential risks."
A survey released earlier this year by Pushpay, a leading payments and engagement solutions provider for the faith-based and nonprofit sectors, collected in February from about 8,000 church leaders, suggests that the use of AI has increased by 80% across all ministries in churches, but only for specific tasks.
"While adoption (of AI) has increased, leaders remain reluctant to rely on AI for pastoral content. Last year's report revealed that less than one quarter of AI users applied the tool for developing devotionals, sermons, or ideas for pastoral care; that pattern still holds true today," Pushpay researchers noted. "The vast majority of AI use cases revolve around content generation and editing of communication materials like emails, imagery, and social media posts."
Lazy.
The only place AI has for writing is to give you a base to start with. You should be doing your own work to make the message your own.
i thought study of the Word of God, prayer, and perhaps fasting were supposed to be sermon preparation.
if you forget a particular passage, and need to find the verse, you can give AI some text prompts and it will find it in a second. I think that’s great.
If they’re doing much with AI, their sermons are going to be heavily left-wing influenced.
Sheesh.... thou shalt not grift less than 100K.
That's exactly what I was going to say. It wasn't bad enough that the internet made people lazy. Here's another platform to make it even worse.
“It wasn’t bad enough that the internet made people lazy. Here’s another platform to make it even worse.”
Just wait until Judgement Day when God throws a curveball and announces the new Judgement AI bot which will decide these Pastors final fates.
I hope I'm there to see it.
I also launched off into some tangential research on topics such as "Was Jesus ever referenced in Roman historical accounts?" and "How many people rose from the dead when Jesus was crucified?" (The answer to that stunned me.)
Another interesting topic of AI research that I formerly knew nothing about was with regard to giants other than Goliath that David killed in his lifetime. (Which stunned me even more - I guess I stun easily.)
Exactly.
This Guy has always found the verse via duckduckgo search.
What do they do the other 6 days of the week?
Yes, my point being that you don’t have to search through a library of actual books anymore. You can do searches at light speed now. Just another tool. But no, I’d never want AI to write a sermon. That’s insane. Very lazy
We suspected that Mom’s preacher was using sermons he poached from the www several years ago. Pre-AI.
Once we recalled some phases he used and Googled them, found matches, so decided he was doing just that.
It has always taken guts for a young parish priest to come up with and then deliver his first sermon. Now this—to have to consider whether what you take the time to come up with on your own without AI will be outstripped by AI itself, or another priest using AI.
That said, many lay Catholics are very sharp now, having used modern tools, smartphone, WWW, YouTube, to more than make up for what was lacking in terms of catechesis in their youth. Priests really can’t afford to fall short of what their parishioners already know.
It’s a fool’s errand to think that AI will supply or make up for a deficit of this nature in a young priest’s mind. Problem is, though, that the training priests are receiving in the typical diocesan seminary is and has for decades now been suspect. So young priests if they are smart and love the faith need to max out self-education and self-training to stay on track and fulfill their part of the pastoral role.
Using all available tools as you say.
it’s the kids I worry about, using AI to do their homework and their thinking for them. I expect IQ’s to drop significantly over time. Use it or lose it.
I just stole from other preachers. Matt Chandler was my go to.
Babylon Bee should have gotten this first.
Lol.
They better get proofread first.
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