Panel: ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AND (IN)EQUALITIES: CONTRIBUTIONS FROM THEOLOGY AND RELIGION



511.5 - ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AND THE RECONFIGURATION OF THEOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY: INEQUALITY, AGENCY, AND THE SACRED IN THE ALGORITHMIC AGE

AUTHORS:
Sathiya R. (KLEF Deemed to be University ~ VIJAYAWADA ~ India)
Text:
Artificial Intelligence is increasingly positioned not merely as a technological tool but as a transformative cultural force reshaping human self-understanding. This paper examines how contemporary AI discourse intersects with theological anthropology, particularly in relation to emerging forms of inequality. While AI systems promise efficiency and optimization, they also generate asymmetries of knowledge, agency, and power. These asymmetries raise profound theological questions: What becomes of the concept of imago Dei in an age of algorithmic decision-making? Does AI redistribute or concentrate interpretive authority traditionally associated with human moral and spiritual agency? Drawing from theological anthropology, philosophy of technology, and digital religion studies, this paper argues that AI creates new symbolic hierarchies that mirror older theological structures of transcendence and mediation. Algorithmic systems increasingly function as epistemic authorities, shaping moral judgments, social inclusion, and economic participation. In doing so, they risk reinforcing structural inequalities under the guise of technological neutrality. Theologically, this shift challenges classical understandings of human uniqueness, moral responsibility, and relationality. Rather than viewing AI as either salvific or apocalyptic, this paper proposes a framework of "critical theological discernment," emphasizing human dignity, embodied relationality, and ethical accountability. By situating AI within broader religious and ethical traditions, the study contributes to contemporary debates on religion and inequality, highlighting how algorithmic systems reshape spiritual imagination, social power, and theological categories. The paper ultimately argues for a constructive theological engagement that neither sacralizes technology nor dismisses it, but reclaims human agency within digitally mediated societies.