In this episode, Luke and Adam react to some hot takes about A.I. They discuss Adam’s latest sermon called “Christianity in the age of AI”. And they try to reconcile seemingly conflicting viewpoints on the topic.

This is Episode 1 of AI in the Age of Christianity, a series where Luke and Adam bring in guests, explore the hard questions, and work toward a framework the church can actually use.

TIMESTAMPS

00:01:00 Why AI keeps finding its way into every conversation

00:02:00 Adam's sermon research and the rabbit hole it opened

00:03:00 Clip 1: "We Are Building God With AI"

00:07:00 Is treating AI like a god a form of idolatry?

00:09:00 Clip 2: The $800 million biohacker building gods

00:12:00 Clip 3: Midwifing a deity

00:16:00 Clip 4: Tucker Carlson and the trillion-dollar question

00:17:00 An Adventist lens on AI and prophecy

00:18:00 How much does Claude already know about you?

00:21:00 The Pope, the encyclical, and the Tower of Babel

00:22:00 Announcing the series: AI in the Age of Christianity

MEET YOUR HOSTS

Luke Farrugia is the co-founder and CEO of Blue Vineyard, a family of digital technology companies built to serve mission-driven and Adventist organisations. He's got 17+ years in web design and consulting. Luke brought his expertise into the Adventist digital space and is building an ecosystem of digital specialists.

Connect with Luke on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lukefarrugia

Adam Weeks serves on the pastoral staff at Auburn Seventh-day Adventist Church in Northern California. He also works on the team at Blue Vineyard.

Watch Adam's sermon on AI: https://fb.watch/HJQj5Kw6mq/?mibextid=wwXIfr

CONNECT WITH BLUE VINEYARD

• Subscribe for more insights on faith and technology
• Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/@BlueVineyard
• Website — https://bluevineyard.com
• LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/company/blue-vineyard/
• Get in touch — hello@bluevineyard.com

Meet Dave, one of the key minds behind Blue Vineyard. This is the first episode of our new "Humans of Blue Vineyard" series. In it, we sat down to explore the journey that shaped who he is today.

You’ll discover the path he took before he worked for Blue Vineyard. Each chapter left its mark on how he thinks and leads today. And what actually shifted his path from ministry to entrepreneurship to engineering. And the moment his work at Blue Vineyard became part of his calling.

Timestamps:

• 00:00 – How Luke and Dave first met
• 00:07 – Dave's winding career path, from machinist to ministry to engineering
• 00:16 – The moment Blue Vineyard became part of his calling
• 00:17 – Dave's AI and productivity toolkit
• 00:21 – What surprises him about how the church operates
• 00:28 – What Dave's most proud of outside of work
• 00:33 – His vision for solving homelessness and reshaping ministry
• 00:39 – Book recommendations
• 00:41 – Dave's superpower and closing encouragement

Dave’s Recommended Books:

• Thoughts from the Mount of Blessing, by Ellen G. White
• Good to Great, by Jim Collins
• 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, by Steven Covey

CONNECT WITH BLUE VINEYARD

• 🔵 Subscribe, and join the discussion
• 🎙️ Audio Podcast: https://rss.com/podcasts/bluevineyard/
• 🌐 Website: https://bluevineyard.com
• 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/blue-vineyard/
• ✉️ Get in touch: hello@bluevineyard.com

Your congregation is already forming deep, emotionally significant relationships online, with influencers and creators who have no idea they exist. Dr. Larry Witzel completed his PhD in Strategic Media, studying exactly this, and his conclusion is clear: if pastors are not consistently showing up online, someone else is filling that space. In this episode, we unpack the research and what to do about it.

00:00 Welcome and Larry's PhD journey

03:00 What parasocial relationships are and why they matter

07:00 Real-life examples, Technoblade, Taylor Tomlinson, and a daughter at Starbucks

14:00 What separates successful creators from wannabes

16:00 How pastors can harvest parasocial relationships evangelistically

20:00 Larry's personal social media shift and the research that triggered it

26:00 Why Larry launched the Ministry Insights podcast

32:00 Thinking in audio and video at the same time

42:00 The biggest challenges of a weekly release cadence

48:00 Practical advice for pastors who want to get started

Dr. Larry Witzel: https://www.linkedin.com/in/larrywitzel/ | larry@sermonview.com | sermonview.com

CONNECT WITH BLUE VINEYARD 🔵 Subscribe for more insights on faith and technology 🎙️ Audio Podcast: https://rss.com/podcasts/bluevineyard/ 🌐 Website: https://bluevineyard.com 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/blue-vineyard/ ✉️ Get in touch: hello@bluevineyard.com