Mon
26
Jan
Seminars and Conferences
Are Machines of Loving Grace Really Possible?
On Monday, 26 January 2026, at 4.30 p.m., Simon Cross will hold an online seminar entitled Are Machines of Loving Grace Really Possible?
Abstract
This seminar will explore why it remains so difficult to translate high-level ethical principles of AI into concrete technical practices. Using Dario Amodei's book Machines of Loving Grace as a starting point, it will examine the conceptual gap between ethical ambition and the operational realities of contemporary AI systems. By tracing the connections between love, grace, and moral agency, the talk will highlight the fundamental differences between humans and machines and consider how these differences shape what ethical principles can meaningfully require of AI. Framed within a broader sociological and philosophical context, the discussion will reflect an explicitly Christian metaphysical perspective, offered as a comparative lens with which to engage with dominant secular and normative approaches to AI ethics.
Speaker: Simon Cross, Bishop of Oxford
Biography
Dr. Simon Cross works on artificial intelligence for the Bishop of Oxford and parliamentary unit of the Church of England’s Faith in Public Life unit. His role encompasses the policy, regulatory, theological, ethical, and contextual aspects of ‘AI’. He briefs and advises the twenty-six Anglican bishops in the House of Lords on international governance and UK specific digital policy and legislation. He guest lectures and presents internationally on the practical and theological aspects of AI, and represents the Church of England among an active consortium of UK civil society organisations researching, advocating, and lobbying for good digital regulation and the common good. His perspective on ‘AI’ draws heavily from an undergraduate degree in theology; a master’s degree in science and theology at Durham University that explored the theological strengths and weaknesses of Einstein’s aphorism “God does not play dice with the universe”; and a DPhil from Oxford exploring the theological metaphysics of scientific perspectives on divine action. A former airline pilot, he has practical experience of the ways in which automation can equally augment or undermine human agency and believes ‘AI’s most pressing questions all cluster at the intersection of science, philosophy, theology, and ethics'.
The seminar will take place online at this link.
For further information, please contact Daniele Quercia.
Abstract
This seminar will explore why it remains so difficult to translate high-level ethical principles of AI into concrete technical practices. Using Dario Amodei's book Machines of Loving Grace as a starting point, it will examine the conceptual gap between ethical ambition and the operational realities of contemporary AI systems. By tracing the connections between love, grace, and moral agency, the talk will highlight the fundamental differences between humans and machines and consider how these differences shape what ethical principles can meaningfully require of AI. Framed within a broader sociological and philosophical context, the discussion will reflect an explicitly Christian metaphysical perspective, offered as a comparative lens with which to engage with dominant secular and normative approaches to AI ethics.
Speaker: Simon Cross, Bishop of Oxford
Biography
Dr. Simon Cross works on artificial intelligence for the Bishop of Oxford and parliamentary unit of the Church of England’s Faith in Public Life unit. His role encompasses the policy, regulatory, theological, ethical, and contextual aspects of ‘AI’. He briefs and advises the twenty-six Anglican bishops in the House of Lords on international governance and UK specific digital policy and legislation. He guest lectures and presents internationally on the practical and theological aspects of AI, and represents the Church of England among an active consortium of UK civil society organisations researching, advocating, and lobbying for good digital regulation and the common good. His perspective on ‘AI’ draws heavily from an undergraduate degree in theology; a master’s degree in science and theology at Durham University that explored the theological strengths and weaknesses of Einstein’s aphorism “God does not play dice with the universe”; and a DPhil from Oxford exploring the theological metaphysics of scientific perspectives on divine action. A former airline pilot, he has practical experience of the ways in which automation can equally augment or undermine human agency and believes ‘AI’s most pressing questions all cluster at the intersection of science, philosophy, theology, and ethics'.
The seminar will take place online at this link.
For further information, please contact Daniele Quercia.