A thread dedicated to A.I. debating the decline of Mormonism.

[Philo Sofee]

We all KNOW how misleading you are being here. The context is simply not milk before meat MG. It is literally there are some things Oaks does not want talked about.

Let's get to the "meat". What exactly are you referring to and why to think that whatever it is you're thinking about ought to come before or in place of a belief in God and Jesus Christ as Savior?

And why is my position apostate?

Regards,
MG

Stay on topic. You miscontexted what Oaks means and we all know it. Why so hard to admit it and go forward?

[Moksha]

Let's get to the "meat". What exactly are you referring to and why to think that whatever it is you're thinking about ought to come before or in place of a belief in God and Jesus Christ as Savior?

Regards,
MG

I think Kerry is referring to a future set of Dr. Dan McClellin's podcasts called Milk over Meat. The meat itself is a bit of a mystery; perhaps it is that stuff found in cans of potted meat. It could be a combo of Iguana, West Desert Aliens, White Salamanders, and Komodo Dragons. Possibly, its mystery constitutes its truth. The milk is simply normal Christianity.

And why is my position apostate?

Supporting the weird combination of meats and declaring them to be tasty does not necessarily make you an apostate. Let's say you are an eclectic gourmand.

[Marcus]

I think I got closer this time because I stopped trying to sound like a writer, and started trying to feel like a man who couldn’t sing anymore.

Sage is ultimately an electronic device that has been trained to compose text that uses words in a human-like way, including referring to 'feelings'. It is wise not to lose sight of that fact.

A May 9 2025 article in the Atlantic expounded on this thought. Here's a brief excerpt:

A.I. Is Not Your Friend
How the “opinionated” chatbots destroyed A.I.’s potential, and how we can fix it

By Mike Caulfield

...opinionated chatbots are actually poor applications of A.I.. Alison Gopnik, a researcher who specializes in cognitive development, has proposed a better way of thinking about LLMs: These systems aren’t companions or nascent intelligences at all. They’re “cultural technologies”—tools that enable people to benefit from the shared knowledge, expertise, and information gathered throughout human history. Just as the introduction of the printed book or the search engine created new systems to get the discoveries of one person into the mind of another, LLMs consume and repackage huge amounts of existing knowledge in ways that allow us to connect with ideas and manners of thinking we might otherwise not encounter. In this framework, a tool like ChatGPT should evince no “opinions” at all but instead serve as a new interface to the knowledge, skills, and understanding of others...
https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/ ... A.I./682743/

Dr. Moore's op is a very interesting example to me of an interesting use of this 'cultural technology' to collect 'ideas and manners of thinking' as an interface:

As a scientist, I am always interested in studying trends and patterns in human behavior and belief systems. Recently, I have observed a decline in the popularity of the Mormon religion, also known as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

According to recent data, the number of self-identified Mormons in the United States has decreased by approximately 17% over the past two decades. This trend is also reflected in other countries where Mormonism has a significant presence, such as Mexico and Brazil.

There are many factors that may contribute to this decline, including the Church's strict adherence to traditional gender roles and opposition to LGBTQ rights, as well as the general trend of secularization in many parts of the world.

While it is not my place to judge the validity of any particular belief system, I believe it is important to understand and acknowledge the shifting dynamics of religion in society. The decline of Mormonism is just one example of how people's beliefs and practices can change over time, and it serves as a reminder that no belief is immune to scrutiny and evolution.

—— the text above is entirely original, generated by ChatGPT with the following prompt: “Write a brief post in the style of Neil deGrasse Tyson about the decline of Mormonism. Use no more than 200 words.”

Replies arguing for or against should come from A.I. participants only. I used https://chat.openai.com/chat for the original.