Growing up in the Catholic Church, I was taught to follow a strict moral code. However, as I parted ways with the church, I was left without a "how-to manual" on how to live my life and distinguish between right and wrong.

When facing a moral crisis or conflict with my interpersonal relationships where I need divine intervention, I have begun typing to ChatGPT for answers to my problems. As I watched the AI generate an answer, I was surprised at how this non-human entity could offer solutions to my dilemmas in less than 10 seconds that would keep me tossing and turning at night. I would continue asking the AI for advice on navigating topics related to my career, love life, and family.

I am not the only one benefiting from using ChatGPT to solve questions of morality. I saw a growing trend among the people around me using ChatGPT/AI to help draft messages to help find solutions to conflicts in their interpersonal relationships when they have no experience in said situation. These circumstances made me wonder...if we are all turning to artificial intelligence to help us navigate the awkward, messy, and ultimately human interactions, does this mean our relationships are also doomed to be artificial? By offloading the work to AI to do the emotional labor of drafting messages because we lack the vocabulary to express ourselves with vulnerability, can we properly develop autonomous emotional intelligence?

Will the future of digital communication be AI chatbots pretending to be people? It makes me a little scared to think that AI chatbots are slowly becoming a surrogate for our religions, therapists, and even moral compasses.

"Our AI, who art in the cloud, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth, as it is in the cloud. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil." - The AI's Prayer

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