I’m sure that most of you
have heard about ChatGPT. But in case you haven’t, this is a so-called application
of artificial intelligence, or AI, that has taken an unsuspecting world by storm.
Its ability to write excellent academic essays has teachers everywhere running
scared.
So, I thought I would see
how well ChatGPT could write a homily on today’s Gospel.
The answer? Let’s just
say I’m looking seriously at retirement and taking up gardening!
However, there was one
thing the new technology could not do. I asked it the name of the man born
blind, and it couldn’t tell me. But I can tell you.
The name of the man born
blind is Gregory Smith. And Kieran Magee. And Karen Magee. And your name, too.
There’s a reason that the
Gospel doesn’t give us a name: that man is all of us. All of us came into a
world shrouded in darkness, and wounded by sin.
In Baptism, the celebrant
says “You have been enlightened by Christ. Walk always as children of the light
and keep the flame of faith alive in your hearts.” This is not simply symbolic
language but practical truth. The light of faith provides Christians with moral
clarity in a confused world; as St. Thomas Aquinas said “the certainty that the
divine light gives is greater than that which the light of natural reason
gives.” (CCC 157)
We sometimes hear the
expression ‘blind faith.’ It’s misleading. Faith is anything but blind when the
intellect is enlightened by grace. And the further away we move from the
Creator the more our thinking is clouded. The prophet Jeremiah, proclaiming God’s
judgement on infidelity, summed this up in three words: “truth has perished.”
You have only to watch a
newscast or read a paper to see how this applies to our own society today. On
many issues, fundamental to individual and social flourishing, a line from
Shakespeare’s Macbeth is fitting: “Fair is foul, and foul is fair.”
Of course, the most
powerful light given in Baptism is the ability to recognize Jesus as Lord. The
drama of the blind man’s healing is secondary to the gift of seeing Jesus.
In all of this, we are
the man born blind. Even ChatGPT understood this. It suggested four ways in
which we are like him and can receive the healing he received. I agreed with
all four and tried to fit them in to my homily today.
First, we have many
questions and doubts. The disciples’ question to Jesus regarding who sinned,
the man or his parents, shows their lack of understanding of who God is and how
he works. Similarly, modern Christians are also faced with doubts about their
faith. We wonder why God allows evil to exist or why he hasn’t answered our
prayers.
However, just as Jesus
answered the disciples’ question by teaching them about God’s saving plan, we
can find answers to our questions through prayer and studying God’s word.
Through our doubts and questions, placed before the Lord, we can grow in faith
and develop a deeper understanding of how God works.
Second, like the man born
blind, many Catholics today face ridicule and rejection—even persecution—when they
profess their faith. I hear, especially from young people, about how hard it is
for them at school and work.
The man in today’s Gospel
is not yet a Christian but he is certainly treated like one. He reminds us of
what Jesus said to us: “Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute
you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.” (Mt 5:11)
Look at what happened after
the Jewish leaders rejected him. The man did not need to go looking for Jesus—Jesus
came looking for him. Jesus rewarded his constancy by revealing himself even more
clearly.
Accepting the darkness of
discrimination can lead to a deeper relationship with Jesus, the Light of the
world. As the psalmist says to God, “taunts against you fall on me.” (Ps. 68)
ChatGPT’s third point was
a bit on the obvious side—a reminder that artificial intelligence is actually
not intelligence at all. AI just does a terrific job of gathering and presenting
the work of human minds, cutting and pasting with remarkable skill, but cutting
and pasting all the same.
The obvious point is that
each of us needs healing. The man born blind received his sight in a miracle of
physical healing, but he also received spiritual healing through his encounter
with Jesus. In the same way, each of us needs healing and redemption from our
sinful nature.
As St. Paul writes “once you
were darkness, but now in the Lord you are light.” (Eph. 5:8)
Only at the end of its homily
did ChatGPT say something I hadn’t thought of. But I liked it very much. The
application’s fourth point was that we are like the man born blind because we
too have a testimony to share.
After he received his
sight, the man witnessed to others about the transforming power of Jesus. We
heard his simple testimony “One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see … if
this man were not from God, he could do nothing.”
Every baptized Christian
has something to share about how God has transformed or healed us. Whether it’s
about a personal encounter with Jesus or about the power of prayer, we need to
share our stories of how faith has changed our lives.
I can’t tell you how much
I admire the parishioners who have stood in this pulpit to give their testimony
of faith at Water in the Desert, month after month. But I pray that the day
will come when such sharing is no longer extraordinary but understood as part
and parcel of an ordinary Christian’s life.
As the man born blind
showed us, all it takes is stating simple truths without hesitation or
compromise, in a spirit of thanksgiving.
My one-sentence takeaway
can come straight from ChatGPT. The story of the man born blind has much to
teach modern-day Christians; like the blind man, we face questions, doubts,
rejection, and the need for healing and redemption. However, through faith in
Jesus, we can find hope, comfort, and a testimony to share with others.
But I’m not prepared to
give the last word to a computer! In the first place, ChatGPT did not know it
was preaching on Laetare Sunday. It did not know this was the fourth Sunday of
Lent, a day when the Church invites us to be especially joyful.
In the second place, it
didn’t recognize that today is the occasion of the second scrutiny of catechumens,
those preparing for Baptism at the Easter Vigil. But I cannot criticize it for
that failing, because I myself did not know we had catechumens, since none appeared
last week for the first scrutiny.
It turns out that we have
three catechumens who will be baptized and confirmed at Easter—but all three
are away with their families for spring break!
Being joyful was easy
today when I found out that three participants in our RCIA program had asked
for Baptism, and two who are already Christians will be received into full
communion with the Church and confirmed alongside them at our glorious
celebration of the Easter Vigil.
So now I can add that the
names of the man born blind are also Chelsea, Olivia, Sara, Brittany, and Dara.
Take that ChatGPT!! And
my homily was almost 600 words longer than yours—which may or may not be something
to brag about.
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