WHAT IS TRUTH?
REDISCOVERING ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN ANTHROPOLOGY IN THE AGE OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE Subdeacon Scott Strickland
n an age of disinformation and artificial intelligence, it is becoming increasingly difficult to d istinguish truth from falsehood. Moreover, in a postmodern world, we are told that we should “live our truth.” In this view, however, truth becomes subjective and individualized. Each of us becomes the sole arbiter of truth in a fractured and complex world. In Scripture, we see the pursuit of truth. In the Gospel of John, Christ says, “To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth hears my voice.” Pilate responds, “What is truth?” (18:37–8). St. Cyril of Alexandria shows us that “Pilate’s dullness of apprehension arose from his stubborn heart, and his reluctance to admit the truth. Christ fitly adds the word, ‘Everyone that is of the truth heareth My voice.’ For the word of truth gains a ready acceptance from those who have already learnt and love it; but with others it is not so.” Christ Himself tells us that He is the way, the truth, and the life ( John 14:6). He is truly sovereign over all things visible and invisible. He is truth incarnate. It is Pilate’s hardness of heart that obscures the very truth that stands before him. In this moment, truth is literally and figuratively on trial. Perhaps, deep inside, Pilate knows the truth, but he is too reluctant and fearful to admit it; the cost might be too high. Immediately after asking, “What is truth?” however, Pilate springs into action. “And when he had said this, he went out again unto the Jews, and said unto them, I find in him no fault at all.” Pilate goes so far as to declare Jesus faultless and to suggest that Jesus be released based on the Jewish custom at Passover. Pilate acts prudentially in his acquittal. However, the madness of the crowd takes hold,
and an exchange occurs. Jesus is condemned, and Barabbas is released. We see a murderer walk free and a sheep led to the slaughter (Isaiah 53). In this exchange, “they exchanged the truth about God for a lie” (Romans 1:25). Like Pilate, we ask ourselves, “What is truth?” It becomes increasingly hard to navigate reality when even our eyes can deceive us. A.I. (or AI, “Artificial Intelligence”) and ChatGPT have shown us that both the written word, the static image, and video have all been compromised as presenters of truth. They can no longer be trusted to represent reality. This easy unreality undermines our trust elections, democracy, global foreign relations, and our world in general. Here is a silly example, perhaps, but with one showing the dangerous potential for other situations. Pablo Xavier used Midjourney, an artificial intelligence image generator, to create these images that fooled most people on the Internet.
Ecce Homo (“Behold the Man”), Antonio Ciseri’s depiction of Pilate presenting a scourged Jesus to the people of Jerusalem
The Word
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