The arrival of generative artificial intelligence (AI) is no longer a distant whisper; it is a present reality knocking at the doors of our society, our homes, and our churches. For believers, especially within the dynamic context of the global Chinese church, this technological wave brings with it a cascade of urgent questions. Is AI a threat to be feared, a tool to be leveraged, or both? How do we embrace its potential for the Great Commission without compromising the integrity of our message or the essence of our humanity? This special issue, Where Wisdom Meets Faith, is curated not to provide easy answers, but to equip the church with the theological depth, technical understanding, and missional courage needed to navigate this new frontier.
Our journey begins with the most fundamental question: What does it mean to be human in an age of intelligent machines? In our lead article, Ximian Xu lays a critical theological foundation, exploring AI through the Reformed lenses of imago Dei (the image of God) and natura vitiata (our fallen nature). This framework helps us appreciate AI’s promise while clearly delineating its profound limitations in the face of human uniqueness.
Building on this, we look to the past to inform our present. The article Would Aquinas and Zhu Xi Embrace AI With AI? bridges millennia of thought, asking how figures like Thomas Aquinas and Zhu Xi might have approached AI. This piece is particularly relevant for the Chinese church, reminding us that engaging new knowledge with theological wisdom is a timeless Christian—and human—endeavor.
From the theological “why,” we turn to the critical question of how this technology is built. Here, we are privileged to feature an article on Green Learning and the Christian Response to AI Foundations, Ethics, and Stewardship from a top-tier academic researcher in the field—a rare and vital perspective from within the Chinese Christian community. His piece presents a compelling case for Christian stewardship not just in using AI, but in the very act of its creation, arguing that our call is to champion technologies that are sustainable, transparent, and ethically built from the ground up. This crucial perspective on how to build responsibly provides the foundation for my own article, Great Commission to Chinese and All Nations—How Can AI Help?, which then shifts the focus to how to use these tools. My piece explores a framework for the real-world application of AI in evangelism and discipleship, focusing on mitigating the practical risks of data privacy, theological drift, and hallucination.
Looking to the horizon, our interview with Dr. Wei-Jing Zhu, the CEO of a Christian AI business, offers a glimpse into Empowering the Church with Code: One Physicist’s AI Journey for the Great Commission. His insights from the front lines of development provide a practical vision for how emerging tools, especially in agentic AI, will shape the future of digital ministry. Finally, our book review of John C. Lennox’s 2084 and the AI Revolution serves as an essential guide for every pastor and layperson, grounding the complex AI debate in biblical hope and equipping us to face the future with faith, not fear.
For the Chinese church, operating at the intersection of rapid technological adoption and unique cultural pressures, these discussions are not abstract. They are vital. Together, these articles form a conversation—moving from theology to history, from stewardship to strategy, and from current application to future hope. It is our prayer that this collection will help the church move beyond a simple binary of threat or opportunity and instead step forward with the wisdom to discern the difference, leveraging this powerful new era for the glory of God.
