Belief in the Future

Belief in the Future

Technology and religion sometimes seem like oil and water, but they've been crossing paths for centuries and aren't going to stop. Hosted by David Zvi Kalman. New episode every other week. Belief in the Future is a production of Sinai and Synapses. It was made with support from Templeton World Charity Foundation.

Episodes

The Wild World of Bible Apps

February 26, 2025 • 45 mins
We often think about how technology has influenced religion, but we rarely question the opposite: how has religion pushed technological advancement? In the case of Christianity, software to share the Bible has been in development for decades and has been shaping tech advancement behind the scenes for even longer. On this episode, we're talking to John Dyer, a professor at Dallas Theological Seminary and the author of the new book P...
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The Church that wants to build God

January 17, 2025 • 39 mins
What if AI and religion had a converging relationship rather than a parallel one? In Professor Beth Singler's new book, Religion and Artificial Intelligence: An Introduction, she explores how enmeshed technology and religion are in our current era, and how we as a society may be heading toward the creation and worship of a god-like AI.   Reading list:  Roko’s Basilisk or Pascal’s? Thinking of Singularity Thought Experiments as Imp...
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The Temptation of AI Christ

December 24, 2024 • 28 mins
The confessional booth is usually a private space for reflection and human connection. But what if, on the other side of the wall, you discovered you were asking forgiveness from a robot? This week, we're talking to Marco Schmid, the theologian at St. Peter's Chapel in Lucerne, Switzerland, about how his church uses AI to guide people to and through their prayer.  You can read more about St. Peter's Chapel and its AI program on NP...
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Does Religion Have Wisdom for Tech?

December 3, 2024 • 45 mins
Does religion have a role in developing ethical frameworks around technology? On this episode, we're talking to Rabbi Zvika Kreiger, spiritual leader of Chochmat Halev and former Director of Responsible Innovation at Facebook. Zvika and host David Zvi Kalman dive into the Metaverse and discuss how religious leaders can lean into technology, and what separation of tech and religion looks like. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...
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Is Tech Too Fast to be Governed?

November 12, 2024 • 37 mins
Technology moves quickly – often times faster than governments can create laws to regulate it. So how do we adapt our lawmaking practices to keep up?    We’re talking to Gideon Lichfield, a journalist and alum of MIT Technology Review, The Economist, and WIRED Magazine, about how lawmaking can keep up with the fast pace of our digital world, and how government and religion mirror each other when interfacing with new technology.    ...
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The Secret Synagogue Tapes

October 22, 2024 • 34 mins
You're not allowed to record in synagogue. But what if you're saving a dying culture? Have a question/tip/criticism? Write to us at our fancy new website, beliefinthefuture.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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The Cantor in the Brothel

September 30, 2024 • 15 mins
What happens when you take synagogue music out of the synagogue? Works mentioned Jeremiah Lockwood, Golden Ages: Hasidic Singers and Cantorial Revival in the Digital Era Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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What Silicon Valley Means by "God"

September 10, 2024 • 39 mins
Why do tech CEOs and visionaries use religious language—and what, if anything, does it have to do with organized religion? We talk Mary-Jane Rubenstein, Professor of Religion and Science in Society at Wesleyan, about unity, infinity, simulated realities, NASA, and how human beings have sought to make meaning of their world. Reading List: Homo Deus by Yuval Noah Harari Astrotopia by Mary-Jane Rubenstein Worlds Without End by ...
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Does AI Need History?

August 27, 2024 • 45 mins
The Greeks dreamed of automata, the Jews of golems, and now we've coded bots into powerful servants. Can our ancient quest for artificial life reveal our ethical obligations to today’s creations?  Guest Speaker: Elly Truitt, who holds a Ph.D. in the History of Science from Harvard University and an M.Phil. in Medieval History from the University of Cambridge, is a historian specializing in the circulation of scientific knowledge an...
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Should I Use the Plagiarism Machine?

August 13, 2024 • 54 mins
In this crossover episode of Belief in the Future with Responsa Radio, host David Zvi Kalman dives into whether using generative AI systems like ChatGPT and DALL-E is a form of theft, drawing comparisons to the Jewish tradition of responsa. Back in the day, medieval rabbis often quoted other scholars without giving credit, but it was within a self-referential learning community. If today’s machine learning models can swiftly scrub ...
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AI and the Baptists

July 30, 2024 • 42 mins
What does evangelical Christianity have to say about AI? Quite a lot, according to Jason Thacker. As Director of the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC), he oversaw the creation of the organization’s official AI statement of principles—the first put out by any religious denomination—which recommends moral responsibility towards new technology. Thacker and Kalman discuss how the document came...
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Ghost in the Machine

July 15, 2024 • 56 mins
Death isn't always an elegant ending. When Muhammad Ahmad, a research scientist with a doctorate in machine learning, learned his father’s diagnosis was terminal, he began to create a text-based AI simulation. Host David Zvi Kalman explores the successes and limitations of this process with Mohammed and Rabbi Ethan Witkovsky, who shares a Jewish take on "DeathGPT" and wonders if ancient scholars could enter the chat. Learn more abo...
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The Two Lamp Mystery

July 1, 2024 • 35 mins
Two religious communities invented the same lamp. Why? In our first episode David Zvi is joined by Lindsay Ems, an expert in the sociological impacts of technology on religious communities. Through the lens of Amish technology and the Sabbath for Orthodox Jews, they explore innovative ways these groups maintain their traditions in an increasingly electrified world. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Belief in the Future - Trailer

June 24, 2024 • 4 mins
What we're about. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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