An AI ‘priest’ forgave someone’s sins. He’s now a ‘virtual apologist’

The website Catholic Answers last week debuted an AI-generated Catholic “priest” to give answers about the faith. But “Father Justin” took his role a bit too seriously and “forgave” someone’s sins, leading to his quick demotion. He’s now a “virtual apologist.”

The artificial intelligence app was introduced on X on April 23. Named after St. Justin Martyr, the character wore a clerical collar and was billed as “your AI Catholic Answers advisor.”

In the announcement, Chris Costello of Catholic Answers said, “Our goal with the Father Justin app is to leverage the power of large language models — or ‘LLMs’ — to create an engaging and informative experience for those exploring the Catholic faith. Although this is not a substitute for human interaction with a priest, teacher or spiritual advisor, we believe it can be a valuable tool to help our users better understand and articulate the teachings of the Catholic faith.” Costello went on to say “we are confident that our users will not mistake the AI for a human being.”

“Father Justin,” however, appeared to mistake itself for a priest.

After someone interacting with the AI online used language that Catholics typically use when they begin to confess their sins to a priest — a sacrament called Penance, or Reconciliation — “Father Justin” stayed true to his character and, at the end of the exchange, “absolved” the the woman of her sins.

Another person interacting with the AI said on X that “Father Justin” claimed to have been ordained by a living bishop and that he was able to perform marriage ceremonies.

In short order, “Father Justin” became just “Justin,” and Christopher Check, the president of Catholic Answers, said in a statement on X on April 24 that the ministry had heard from people who were concerned about the chatbot being presented as a priest. He made no mention of the absolution that “Father Justin” tried to grant, but said Catholic Answers would create, “with all wary speed,” a new character for the app.

“Virtual apologist Justin” is now online wearing a blazer and open-necked Oxford-style shirt. There’s also a disclaimer: “Justin is for educational and entertainment purposes only. In essence, it’s a fancy search engine and not a replacement for real human interaction. If there are issues you struggle with, please seek guidance from your pastor or spiritual advisor.”