[Note: This post was republished; earlier post was deleted. Thanks for understanding!]
Phil Eubank is the lead pastor at Menlo Church, one of the largest churches in Silicon Valley. As one can imagine, Pastor Phil has quite a flock of skeptical intellectuals and scientists in his midst. California ranks the 15th least religious state, according to Pew Research while the San Francisco Bay Area is one of the most irreligious regions in the country, also according to Pew.
The Bay Area is known for its exquisite topography, but few see God’s creation at work. Rather belief in a divine power is replaced with secular humanism, a worldview centered on reason and science to solve the world’s problems while also defining human morality.
In Silicon Valley, located in the southern part of the Bay Area, the world’s most successful companies, such as Apple, Google and Facebook were born. That region is also home to the most distinguished venture capitalists, such as Andreessen Horowitz and Sequoia Capital. It’s where Stanford University, NASA’s Ames Research Center and The Computer History Museum are located. The region is bustling with what the material world would consider the smartest, most successful, and most self-confident people on earth. It’s not too hard to imagine why such self-importance is pervasive.
In a place like this, who needs God? And who needs God when man can create an artificial intelligence golden calf to worship?
Yet there’s some hope. Peter Thiel has been increasingly speaking publicly about his faith. He spoke at our events Culture, Religion & Technology 2021 and Culture, Religion & Technology 2024. Given his prominence in tech circles, more people seem emboldened to speak about their faith. Along with other technologists speaking out about their faith, Vanity Fair has since published a piece titled: Christianity Was “Borderline Illegal” in Silicon Valley. Now It’s the New Religion.”
What’s happening with faith in Silicon Valley and how is the church embracing AI? Who better to ask than Pastor Phil. He joined me for a conversation.
1:17 - How Menlo Church manages multiple locations and expansion plans.
2:20 - Growth of church (doubling congregation) as it navigated out of Menlo’s internal crises.
3:22 - Menlo’s evolution from PCA USA to the forming of the ECO denomination.
5:00 - Difference between PCA USA and PCA.
7:15 - Intersection of AI and religion - Phil’s view of AI and its use in the church (back office and research); concerns about AI writing sermons and potentially reducing people’s ability to think deeply.
10:47 - The need to understand AI’s place in the discovery process.
12:35 - How do we anchor ourselves to God in the midst of the changes AI is bringing? Thinking about 1 John 4:18 “perfect love casts out fear”. Don’t get caught up in the rip current. God is not afraid of AI.
17:40 - How the internet changed journalism and media in the early aughts; how AI will change media again as well as the church - more niche and more bombastic voices.
21:54 - You’re not going to lose your job to AI, but to someone who uses AI; Knowing how to keep AI in the background and making community paramount.
24:00 - The difference between human nature and the nature of AI - AI is built to get people to keep using it.
26:40 - What are the human characteristics that AI cannot have? Human nature is meant to go through suffering (Romans 5) and can robots do that?
27:45 - We’re living in a Tower of Babel moment.
29:00 - Silicon Valley and Phil Eubank’s journey from the midwest to one of the most intellectual places in the world.
31:00 - Evangelizing to the tech community - Silicon Valley is one of the last places with a documented revival.
32:07 – What’s behind the attraction to Christianity - one subset would be Covid and the political climate against men.
34:30 - Church and politics and why secular humanism isn’t working and the promise that culture offers.
37:43 - Being in a religious war (that we’ve always been in) – and how we are all even at the foot of the cross.
38:45 – The cosmic level of national gaslighting.
39:54 - Why are politics is coming into the church.
43:14 - Politics is the new religion. Is it because there’s a lack of shared stories?
45:00 - How does Phil minister to Silicon Valley technologists and influences?
47:04 - Christianity vs secular humanism. Secular humanism is the promise that’s been broken.
47:43 - Why does God seem to want war.
48:16 - How to pastor to both sides in the conflict between Israel and Iran.
51:06 – Phil Eubank’s vision of his ministry for the year. Create series that have staying power.
54:24 - The eschatological understanding of the church and Israel. Israel the geographical nation or the diaspora of Jews?
Share this post