Faith and Freedom in a Technological Age

Technological innovation and First Amendment freedoms can go hand in hand.

The rapid advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) and data-driven technologies is transforming society, and religious organizations are increasingly using these tools to advance their missions. Yet as lawmakers rush to regulate new technologies, they often overlook how their rules impact religious groups, creating new threats to religious freedom and free speech.

AI and emerging tech are promising vehicles for religious expression. But that promise is jeopardized when regulations designed to address misuse—like the spread of misinformation or algorithmic bias—fail to account for the unique needs of religious groups. Policymakers must ensure that new technology regulations don’t diminish fundamental rights.

A Legacy of Freedom: The First Amendment and Technology

In every generation, advancing technology tests the boundaries of the First Amendment. In the early twentieth century, it was motion pictures. The Supreme Court held in 1915 that motion pictures were not a form of protected expression; they were “a business, pure and simple” and “not to be regarded … as part of the press.”

That decision stood until 1952. In Burstyn v. Wilson, the Court considered a New York statute that outlawed films deemed “sacrilegious” by state-appointed censors. At issue was The Miracle, an Italian film about a peasant girl who, after being seduced by a man she believed to be St. Joseph, gives birth to a son she believes is the Christchild. New York banned the film, but the Supreme Court reversed, rejecting the argument that motion pictures were a unique “evil” that lay beyond First Amendment protection. While new means of communication may present their own “peculiar problems,” the Court said, “the basic principles of freedom of speech and the press … do not vary.” Those principles “make freedom of expression the rule,” not the exception.

The very text of the First Amendment embodies this rule. When the founding generation secured protection for the freedom of both “speech” and “press,” they were protecting not only the content of ideas but also the means of communicating them. The printing press was, after all, the mass communication technology of the day.

Today, a similar debate is playing out with AI. Some fear its ability to supercharge misinformation or enable harmful practices, prompting a surge in regulation. California’s recent law targeting “deceptive” AI-generated political content is one such example. The law was swiftly blocked for violating the First Amendment, highlighting that even in the face of new technologies, free speech principles don’t change.

The Promise and Peril of Data Privacy Laws

Nowhere is the tension between regulation and freedom more evident than in the realm of data privacy. Legislators in at least 19 states have enacted laws restricting how organizations collect, process, and share personal data. While these laws aim to protect individuals, they create unique challenges for religious organizations that increasingly depend on data.

Under many data privacy laws, the simple act of outreach—communicating with a data subject—may require explicit, advance consent. Activities like sharing data between ministries or collaborating on outreach campaigns now risk violating privacy laws unless strict consent procedures are followed. Ministries and denominations with large databases face heightened regulatory burdens, particularly for data that relates to the religious beliefs of members, donors, and congregants.

New data privacy rules unintentionally single out religious organizations and their data for disfavored treatment. This complicates their operations and raises serious constitutional questions about religious exercise and speech.

The stakes are high. If religious organizations cannot freely communicate with their constituents or collaborate with other ministries due to regulatory hurdles, their missions are severely hindered. To avoid compliance costs and liability, they may steer clear of certain practices altogether. This chilling effect is exactly the harm the First Amendment seeks to prevent.

The Double-Edged Sword of AI Regulation

Beyond data privacy, the regulation of AI itself presents new challenges. Colorado’s law banning “algorithmic discrimination” is a case in point. The law prohibits AI systems from making decisions in areas like hiring, housing, and education that result in differential treatment based on protected characteristics such as race, religion, or gender. While well-intentioned, the law could inadvertently entangle religious organizations in compliance battles. Other states are considering similar laws.

We need balanced regulation that addresses the legitimate potential harms of AI while respecting religious freedom. As faith-based organizations increasingly adopt tools like AI chatbots for evangelism, prayer, and counseling, new legal questions arise: Is expression generated by a chatbot a form of protected speech? Just as pressing, who bears responsibility if an AI system generates biased, inaccurate, or harm-inducing responses?

These are uncharted waters. Legislators and courts will need to sort through the implications, but religious organizations must contend with the risks now. Missteps create legal exposure, operational challenges, reputational damage, and even theological dilemmas.

Harnessing AI for Good

Despite the risks, AI’s potential is vast. AI-driven tools are already accelerating scientific discovery, and similar breakthroughs are happening in religious contexts. AI-powered Bible translation is making Scripture accessible to more people worldwide, while religious chatbots are helping individuals explore questions about faith.

This gets to another important constitutional principle. The First Amendment not only protects a speaker’s right to convey information—it also protects a listener’s right to receive it. More generally, the First Amendment protects the “free flow” of information and ideas, something the Supreme Court has called “essential” in a democratic society. The First Amendment thus secures more than an individual right to speech. It also functions as structural safeguard for the marketplace of ideas—regardless of who’s doing the speaking or listening. Under this view, any technology capable of contributing to humanity’s common stock of information is within the ambit of First Amendment protection.

Where freedom of expression is the rule, AI is no exception. Yet these advancements are possible only if speakers (religious and otherwise) can freely harness AI without fear of regulatory overreach. Just as the printing press fueled the Reformation, the Enlightenment, and the American Revolution—and thus gave rise to the First Amendment itself—and just as the internet democratized access to knowledge, AI has the potential to revolutionize how humanity accesses, organizes, and discovers information. For religious groups, innovative technologies are an opportunity to spread their message and contribute to the broader quest for knowledge, truth, and ultimate meaning.

A Call for Thoughtful Regulation

At the intersection of emerging technology and constitutional freedoms, lawmakers must strike a careful balance. Overregulation risks stifling innovation and undermining rights, while underregulation leaves room for misuse and harm. Beyond basic free speech principles, policymakers must consider the unique needs and roles of religious organizations. New laws should both promote technological progress and protect core constitutional rights.

Existing laws on fraud, defamation, and discrimination are sufficient to address some of the harms associated with AI and data misuse. Where new regulations are necessary, they must be narrowly tailored to avoid infringing free speech and religious exercise.

Through centuries of technological change—from the printing press to motion pictures to the internet—the First Amendment has safeguarded Americans’ right to expressive and religious freedom. It can do so again in the age of AI. By reaffirming its principles, we can ensure that innovation and freedom go hand in hand—that technology serves not as a threat to faith and expression, but as another tool for human flourishing.