Magisterium AI is a new artificial intelligence platform that, according to its website, “makes the teaching of the Catholic Church accessible like never before” and that —as its name indicates— is trained with documents from the ecclesial Magisterium.
You can also read: “With an ever-expanding network of partners from around the world and access to unique sources of Catholic information not yet available on the web, we continue to expand the Magisterium AI formation database to make it more smart and useful.
The platform was created by Longbeard, a Rome-based technology company, which is engaged in digital marketing and digital product design and development. Among the client portfolio of this company are some organizations of the Holy See, such as the Dicastery for the Service of Integral Human Development and the Vatican Observatory Foundation; also recognized brands of the Catholic world such as the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, the Word on Fire ministry and the Knights of Columbus.
According to information on their website, Magisterium AI can be useful for explaining complicated theological concepts in simple language, as well as for answering questions or contextualizing information, and for primary analysis of sources. As for priests, it can be used to prepare their homilies.
Likewise, the platform offers the possibility of “practicing conversations”, and explains that this function can be of great benefit to users “who are studying to enter the Church or preparing for the sacraments, since they can use Magisterium AI with the purpose of simulating conversations they might have with clergy or others.”
The platform is in beta version and, although it is optimized to be used in English, it can also respond in several languages, including: Spanish, French, German, Italian, Russian, Chinese, Portuguese, Dutch and Korean. Naturally, the chances of finding errors in answers not written in English are higher.
Similarly, the developers warn that while Magisterium AI can provide valuable information and context, “it should not be the only resource for someone trying to understand Catholic teachings,” adding that “it is always good to consult authoritative sources, engage in discussion with knowledgeable Church leaders and individuals, and reading primary sources such as the Catechism of the Catholic Church.”
Mauricio Artieda, general director of Catholic-Link and an expert in these realities, through a video on an Instagram account, highlighted that Magisterium AI “is a great advance.”
Artieda told that the platform is reliable and safe since “it cannot invent information, nor is it going to confuse people, because it gets its answers by elaborating, connecting and relating ideas based on its training that consists of more than 2,000 texts. of the Catholic Church”.
However, he points out that “all artificial intelligence is in the early stages of their development, which is why they can be wrong”, and adds that “the user has the job of corroborating that this information is correct”.
For Artieda, Magisterium AI is very attractive, because “we did not have a platform of this type, closed and completely Catholic.” In addition, —he adds— “the advantages of artificial intelligence are many and it depends on each one of the tools”. The general director of Catholic-Link is convinced that with these new technologies, many barriers that were presented to evangelization are broken.