Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Evangelical
Religious Art
To AI or Not to AI: That Is the Question? AI in Creativity

To AI or Not to AI: That Is the Question? AI in Creativity

Last updated on: June 3, 2026 at 8:36 am by David Weiss

To AI or Not to AI: That Is the Question? AI in Creativity 2026-06-03T08:36:52-04:00 David Weiss

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Humorous Illustration on AI generated and manipulated by the author using Google Gemini

The other day I saw a meme that urged people not to use AI for making art, music, writing, etc. Full transparency, when I was trying to make living as an artist, I know I would’ve been beating that drum too. But I think I would have been wrong.

Thinking Back

As I was thinking of all this, I was transported back in time to the turn of the millennium. I was part of a sort of think tank for a wonderful youth ministry resource that was tied to the Christian music industry. We gathered in a cabin in the woods to discuss trends in the industry, and the conversation moved to Napster, which was arguably a forerunner to the first music streaming services. Now admittedly, Napster had its problems and at that point, and even today, I want to own my music as a tangible product, but back then the industry was really up in arms. Metallica and other artists were suing them, and the industry was living in fear. Streaming had to go. Can you imagine?

Inevitability

The truth is streaming was inevitable. Today it’s one of the main ways music is delivered to consumers. Fighting against it was futile, and the trick was not stamping it out. The genie was out of the bottle, and it was up to the industry to figure out how to monetize it. And they did. Music tours used to lose money and the artists and labels made their money from music sales, Now it seems the reverse is true. I’ll admit the curmudgeon in me hates this model, but it’s not going anywhere. It seems we’re not going to see the same thing happen with AI.

If You Can’t Beat ‘Em

I’ll confess something. I love using AI for creative projects for a number of reasons. The main one is time. I’m a pastor who is also an artist. I pastor a small church where I am responsible for most of the creative output. I do a PowerPoint presentation each week. For the first years of my career, I created most of the graphics I use by hand drawing them and then digitally manipulating them. I will be honest, I loved doing it. I also got very little else done.

A Very Useful Tool

I may have referenced this before, but I once got to a speaking engagement based on the fruit of the Spirit. My understanding was that the theme was “Be Fruitful” but when I arrived at the venue, everything said “Bear Fruit.” These all contained images that were more bear than fruit. There wasn’t time to redo my presentation materials, creating things by hand so, in desperation, I went to the AI function of Photoshop. I asked it to generate a bear dressed as a farmer holding a crate of apples, in the style of fruit crate art. In less than a minute I had a beautiful title slide that would have taken me weeks to generate by hand. The guy who was doing the media for the event said he could use some more of those images for bumps between events, and within a half hour, I generated 10 more.

Generated by the author using Photoshop's AI

Generated by the author using Photoshop’s AI

Reality

In reality, I don’t have time to do this work by hand most of the time. I also don’t have the budget to pay someone to do it for me. I also work on very tight deadlines, so working with a freelancer is almost out of the question. Compound this with the fact that I am something of an anomaly, as a pastor who is an artist. Most people couldn’t make their own graphics if they tried. Don’t get me wrong, I still do original hand crafted art for this when I can. As much as I love that, I would also argue the AI has such a multitude of work to learn from. I may be my own worst critic, but I feel like my work does not compare to what the AI can generate.

And Then There’s Music…

I love making art, but I will also confess, I would trade that ability away in a heartbeat for the ability to make music. That being said, I can’t carry a tune in a bucket, and my coordination is lacking when it comes to playing an instrument. I have always marveled at the power of music to touch hearts and minds. For this reason, I always wanted to make music that said what I wanted to say. I felt powerless to that end until along came Suno.com. Now I can take my ideas, express them poetically and within minutes, have a completely orchestrated song. It’s been life changing for me. All of the sudden I can accompany my messages and my live paintings with music that says exactly what I want it to say. This helps to draw the congregation to exactly where God is leading me.

Hire Somebody

Not long after posting one of my first Suno songs, a musician friend told me I should find a musician to collaborate with instead of doing this. I get it. Music is how he earns a living, but once again, I couldn’t afford to pay him or any other musician what the effort was worth. And I would never ask someone to create for “exposure.” Add to that the fact that it would take days, weeks of even months to work out a single song. I don’t often have that kind of time. Inspiration strikes and moments later, I have something that will work. Plus it’s incredibly flexible.

Flexibility

One day in church, I played my song Wake Up Samson, after a sermon on, you guessed it, Samson. It was very well received, but after the service, as a joke, one of my friends, who is another old school hard rock fan like me, said, “That sounded great, but can you imagine if Iron Maiden did it.” I chuckled, and thought, “Challenge accepted.” I pulled out my lyrics, and asked Suno to give the song a heavy metal sound in that style, and it spit out a pretty respectable song. It’s not an Iron Maiden knock off, but it’s a respectable effort, and it gave us both a good laugh, and that was the only reason it was created.

Then there was the time I played one of my songs for the server at our regular Wednesday afternoon dinner location. She serves our group nearly every week and has become a friend. When I saw how amused she was by my song, I distilled a bunch of our conversations, running joke, etc., into a funny song about her. She was extremely blessed by it and it cost me nothing but a little bit of time. It was great fun, and it’s a great tool.

Generated and manipulated by the author using Google Gemini

It’s a Tool

Now please hear me. I harbor no illusions of being a musician. I’m having fun and creating resources to enhance my ministry. I will never claim these songs as my own work, because they aren’t. suno.com is a sophisticated program that scours the internet to create derivative works. I am a subscriber to suno.com so I don’t technically have to credit them, but I always do. I have no real intention of marketing these songs, I just want to bless people with them. AI is what it is, a tool that can be used for good or evil. I choose to use it for good, and I choose not to oppose it, because it’s not going anywhere. That being said, there is one way I refuse to use it.

The Line In the Sand

I just finished writing a book, and when I posted about sending it out to be published, a well meaning friend asked if it was AI generated. No it was not, and none of my writings will ever be, As a Christian, writing is my line in the sand for AI. It is a never to be crossed. The reason for this is simple. When I bring a message, a sermon or write a lyric, or a book or a column, my goal is to seek the Lord for a message. I want to be led by the Spirit for how to share it with the world. My prayer is that it is divinely inspired. The AI programs are great as far as searching and compiling goes, but they don’t have soul, and they surely don’t have the Holy Spirit. The messages I share with the world may be enhanced by technology, filling in the blanks in my talents and abilities, but they come from the heart. Hopefully, more importantly, they come from the Lord, and my prayer is that will never change.

Bottom Line

AI technology is not going anywhere. We won’t be able to defeat it, so the question becomes how do we harness it? And the question for the church is, if like any other tool, it can be used for good or evil, how do we use it for good, to the glory of God.

General Christian

Creative Arts Ministry

AI in the arts

AI in the church

art

creative arts ministry

creativity

About Dave Weiss

Dave Weiss, SDG is a pastor and a traveling speaker. He has written and/or illustrated many self-published books and has his MDIV and DMIN, both with a concentration in Creative Arts Ministry. His latest creation is The Imaginative Church YouTub Channel, that features AI generated songs, The Simple Truth inspirational devotional videos and more. He is married to his wife Dawn and has two adult sons and a grandson named David. You can read more about the author here. You can read more about the author here.

Previous Post

May 29, 2026

Inactive: Where I’ve Been and Why It Matters to You

Next Post

July 17, 2026 The Pastor Who Paints: Reaching People Through Art

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Creative Arts Ministry Leadership Uncategorized Worship

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz