8 | JANUARY 26 • 2023
I
recently read an interesting article
by Alan Zeitlin, “Should Rabbis
Fear Robots?” Zeitlin interviewed
several rabbis, asking them whether
the brand new ChatGPT program
could deliver sermons and
answer halachic questions
as well as human rabbis.
For those who don’t
know, ChatGPT is an
artificial intelligence
program that has recently
been made available
to the public, and the
early reviews have been
astounding. Think of it as a Google
search program on steroids. It can
quickly write a resume and cover letter
for you … get relationship advice …
produce a complete essay on virtually
any topic … and perform a host of
other complex tasks. Therefore, it’s not
a big stretch to ask whether ChatGPT
can do everything your current spiritual
leader does … and maybe more.
Want a good dvar Torah on Parshat
Shemot? No problem. I requested
the dvar Torah from ChatGPT, and
in a matter of seconds received the
following:
“Parshat Shemot tells the story of the
Israelites’ enslavement in Egypt and the
beginning of Moses’ journey as a leader.
One of the key themes of this parsha is
the idea of redemption and liberation.
“At the beginning of the parsha, the
Israelites are in a state of slavery and
oppression. They cry out to God for
help, and God hears their cries and
chooses Moses to lead them out of
Egypt.
“Moses is initially hesitant to take on
this role, but with God’s guidance, he
becomes a powerful leader and brings
the Israelites out of slavery and into
freedom.
“This story teaches us about the
power of faith and the importance of
standing up for what is right. It also
reminds us that God is always with us,
even in times of hardship and struggle.
“As we read this parsha, we can
reflect on our own lives and think
about the ways in which we may be
called upon to be leaders and advocates
for justice and righteousness. May we
have the courage and faith to follow
in Moses’ footsteps and work toward a
world of freedom and equality for all.”
Not bad for someone who didn’t even
attend a yeshivah day school! Then
again, one can visit Aish.com, Chabad.
org or a multitude of other sites and get
the same kind of divrei Torah, too.
Rabbi Shlomo Litvin, a Chabad
rabbi in Kentucky, isn’t worried
about artificial intelligence programs
replacing rabbis. Said Rabbi Litvin,
“Something artificial will always be
artificial. What will be missing, no
matter what, is the human soul, and
that wisdom is what people come to
shul to hear. There is no replacement.”
Rabbi Erez Sherman of Los
Angeles also is not threatened by
the possibility of robotic rabbis
and pointed out that a big part of
a good sermon is how a sermon
is delivered, something an AI
program cannot easily duplicate.
And Rabbi Greg Wall of Westport,
Connecticut, believes that what rabbis
transmit can’t be threatened by
something that boasts no lineage.
“It’s about mesorah,” Wall said.
“When you hear a rabbi speak,
they learned it from a rabbi,
who learned it from the one
before him. Knowing where
it comes from provides
authenticity that I don’t
think any system or
machine can have.”
HALACHIC QUESTIONS
What about answering halachic
questions? On the surface, it seems
that if an artificial intelligence program
can access the huge data repository of
responsa that has accumulated during
the last two millennia, it should be able
to easily spit out reasonably accurate
answers to halachic questions.
I recently participated in a discussion
about this subject on social media with
several others, and the comments are
worth sharing.
A couple of folks saw no reason
why most halachic questions couldn’t
be answered by an AI program. (One
person quipped, “RabbiGPT just needs
to know when to refer the questioner
to PosekGPT!”) They pointed out that
Facebook, TikTok and other social
media programs are already using
sophisticated algorithms specifically
tailored to an individual’s likes,
PURELY COMMENTARY
Michael
Feldstein
Times of
Israel
opinion
Could ChatGPT Replace
Rabbis and Halachic Decisors?