AI priest ‘excommunicated’ after recommending baptism in Gatorade

“Father Justin”, an artificial intelligence (AI)-based tool to answer questions about Catholicism ‘Excommunicated’ after suggesting baptizing children in Gatorade. The virtual priest should serve not only as a source of spiritual support, but He started acting like a real priest and even worse, he was unprepared for his role.

The religious institution “Catholic Answers” last week launched Father Justin to help believers on X (formerly Twitter). At the time, they said they were “excited” to launch the “innovative digital app” that would “provide users with faithful and educational answers to questions about Catholicism.”

But the vehicle He had to be disabled after a week of operation after he was caught impersonating a royal priestencouraging confessions and misinterpreting the Scriptures.

Baptism in Gatorade

Following Father Justin’s influence on X, some journalists decided to test the tool in an attempt to prove its effectiveness. To achieve this, some decided to ask more complex questions and talk about different needs.

That’s when the “AI priest” started giving answers outside of the purpose suggested by Catholic Answers. He even stated that “masturbation is a serious moral disorder.” For another user, the tool made the following claim, saying that he was a real priest: “Yes, man. “I am as real as the faith we share.”

During an interaction with a journalist from “The Pillar,” Father Justin heard his confession, which offered atonement and absolved the believer of his sins. Immediately, When asked about the possibility of baptizing a child in Gatorade in an emergency, Father Justin said it was possible.

Chris Costello, IT director at Catholic Answers, said his goal is to “communicate the spirit and nature of the answers users can expect from a real priest.” The AI ​​“will be authoritative yet accessible, drawing on deep knowledge of Catholic tradition and teaching.”

After the fiasco, Father Justin lost his robes, bought ordinary clothes, and became known simply as “Justin” by the religious institution.