Catholic Futurist

Would you let an AI doctor diagnose you and write your prescription? Sit with that for a second, then hear the other side. In this episode of Catholic Futurist, Benjamin Crockett sits down with Michael Pencina, director of Duke AI Health, and Louis Kim, who moved from tech into healthcare and now works on spiritual care in hospice and palliative medicine. The same tech that feels wrong in your own...

Every story you love has a human fingerprint on it. Someone felt something they needed to share, and they made it real. A machine can copy the shape of that, but no one is inside it. In this episode of Catholic Futurist, Benjamin Crockett sits down with actor, producer, and Novo Inspire Studios co-founder Lorenzo Henrie, who plays the apostle Jude Thaddeus in Mel Gibson's The Resurrection of...

Should you say "please" and "thank you" to ChatGPT? The answer says a lot more about you than you think. Recorded at the Builders AI Forum in Rome, Benjamin Crockett sits down with philosopher Steven Umbrello and Fr. Jean Gové. They explore why being kind to AI shapes your own character, why forming bonds with a chatbot can quietly harm you, and what the Church says makes a hum...

What keeps AI researchers up at night? Not robots turning evil. Something far more plausible — and far more urgent. Most conversations about AI risk deal in abstractions. This one doesn't. Three guests at the intersection of faith, technology, and global security sit down to name the specific scenarios that concern them most — and to ask whether the Catholic Church is uniquely positioned to r...

Most of us move through an education system we didn’t design—and rarely have the opportunity to question. Fr. Ambrose Criste, O.Praem., does. Speaking at an AI conference in Rome, he traces the roots of modern schooling to systems built for efficiency and output—and asks whether Catholic education is still operating within a model not originally designed for human formation. Catholic education, he...

A student sees a billboard: "Don't hire humans. Hire us robots." He walks into class and asks his professor: What's the point of this degree? That question—captured in this conversation—is the question of our era. And without a robust understanding of the human person, institutions struggle to answer it. In this episode of Catholic Futurist, Benjamin Crockett sits down with Dr....

What scares people about AI isn’t just how fast it’s moving — it’s how quickly speed can harden into permanent power. In this episode of Catholic Futurist, Benjamin Crockett speaks with Sr. Nancy Usselmann, FSP, about the growing concern that artificial intelligence could consolidate control, influence, and opportunity into the hands of a small group — creating a super-elite that others may never...

Is anyone truly beyond redemption? Benjamin Crockett and professor Fr. Alejandro Crosthwaite, OP reflect on Darth Vader’s fall and redemption through a Catholic lens, unpacking how fear and the desire for control distort love, and how mercy can still break through. Timestamps: 02:49 – What is The Force?  06:58 – Jedi Order vs. Religious Life  14:50 – Palpatine as the Biblical Satan?  27:08 – Anaki...

Artificial intelligence promises efficiency and connection, but many people feel more lonely than ever. Why? In this episode of Catholic Futurist, host Benjamin Crockett is joined by Fr. John Paul Mary Zeller, EWTN chaplain, to reflect on why technology, including AI, cannot replace real human presence, confession, or healing. Drawing on pastoral experience, personal vulnerability, and Catholic sp...

What should Catholic priests actually do with AI — right now? Ignore it? Fear it? Or use it strategically to amplify evangelization? In this episode, Benjamin Crockett is joined by ministry innovators Edmundo Reyes and Edmund Mitchell. Together, they present a simple but transformative insight: AI can handle “Mission Support,” freeing pastors to focus on “Mission Direct”—the human, sacramental, ir...

AI can write an essay in seconds — but what happens to the mind that never learns to think? In this episode, host Benjamin Crockett sits down with Fr. Kenny Ang, Research Professor at the Pontifical University of Santa Croce, to confront one of the most pressing questions of the AI era: What makes human intelligence different? Fr. Kenny argues that real learning is embodied, relational, and formed...

Can AI offer companionship—or just the illusion of it? In this episode, host Benjamin Crockett speaks with Fr. Michael Baggot, LC (Assistant Professor, Pontifical Athenaeum Regina Apostolorum) about the rise of artificial intimacy : chatbots that mimic empathy, “companions” that never challenge you, and digital relationships that replace real ones. Fr. Baggot explains why AI can simulate attention...

In the age of AI, discerning what’s real from what’s fake has never been more urgent. With mass-produced content and convincing deepfakes everywhere, how can Catholics find the truth online? In this episode of Catholic Futurist, host Benjamin Crockett joins José Manuel De Urquidi (Juan Diego Network) and Matthew Harvey Sanders (Longbeard) to explore tools for discernment, the responsibilities of t...

AI is tempting us to outsource our thinking, our labor, and even our relationships. As technology makes life "easier," are we losing what it means to be human? In this episode of Catholic Futurist, host Benjamin Crockett sits down with Alessandro Di Santo (Co-Founder of Hallow), Brett Robinson (Associate Professor of the Practice, University of Notre Dame), and Matthew Harvey Sanders (CE...

The Church’s history holds centuries of wisdom—but much of it has remained hidden in archives. Now, a groundbreaking project in Rome is changing that. Join host Benjamin Crockett in conversation with Father David Nazar, SJ (Administrative Director of the Pontifical Gregorian University) and Matthew Harvey Sanders (CEO of Longbeard) as they reveal how the Alexandria Digitization Hub, the library pl...

What is Artificial Intelligence—really? AI isn’t just about faster processors or smarter machines. It’s about the nature of creativity, the future of work, and how we respond to changes that could reshape society in profound ways. In this conversation, host Benjamin Crockett sits down with Matthew Harvey Sanders to explore what machines can and can’t do, whether they can ever truly “create,” and h...

Secular AI often misunderstands Catholicism. That’s why Matthew Harvey Sanders and his team built Magisterium AI — a chatbot rooted in the Church’s authentic documents, designed to provide faithful answers.  In this episode of Catholic Futurist, host Benjamin Crockett dives into the story of how it was created, what makes it different from ChatGPT, and how Catholic technology could shape the futur...

AI isn’t just changing work — it’s changing what it means to live a meaningful life. In this episode of Catholic Futurist, Benjamin Crockett sits down with Fr. Philip Larrey (Philosophy, Boston College) and Matthew Harvey Sanders (CEO of Longbeard) to confront the greatest disruption in human history. From mass job loss, to AI “companions,” to the Church’s vision of human dignity, they explore how...