The Acts of Convention

House of Deputies

The House of Deputies Committee on Governance and Structure presented its Report #14 on Resolution D020 (A Task Force on AI in The Episcopal Church) and moved adoption of a substitute.

Original Text of Resolution:

(D020)

Resolved, the House of Bishops concurring,

That the 81st General Convention authorize and create a Task Force on AI in The Episcopal Church, composed of 15 members as follows: 3 Bishops, 6 Priests or Deacons, and 6 Lay Persons, including members with expertise in a variety of disciplines especially artificial intelligence (AI), liturgy, and ethics; and be it further

Resolved, That the Task Force be mandated with considering the relationship of The Episcopal Church with generative AI, including but not limited to:

• The use of generative AI in writing and preparing sermons and liturgies, especially with regard to plagiarism and preserving the inspiration of the Holy Spirit in the Church’s liturgies;
• The use of generative AI in hiring, particularly in writing job descriptions and preparing Office for Transition Ministry (OTM) profiles;
• The use of generative AI in writing theological and academic works, e.g. The Church’s Teaching Series, and official statements of The Episcopal Church, including drafting resolutions to the General Convention;
• The use and potential misuse of The Episcopal Church’s copyrighted materials, such as Enriching our Worship and the Hymnal, in training generative AI; and
• Investigation of best practices with regard to generative AI from various sources, including other Christian denominations and nonprofit organizations.

And be it further

Resolved, That the Task Force include guidelines for The Episcopal Church for the use of generative AI, including beneficial and detrimental uses, in its report; and be it further

Resolved, That the Task Force begin its work no later than January 1, 2025, with the Task Force concluding its work at the conclusion of the 82nd General Convention, unless its mandate is extended by the 82nd Convention; and be it further

Resolved, That the General Convention request the Joint Standing Committee on Program, Budget and Finance to consider a budget allocation of $50,000 for the implementation of this resolution.

Committee Substitute:

Resolved, the House of Bishops concurring,

That the 81st General Convention authorize and create a Task Force on Artificial Intelligence (AI) in The Episcopal Church, composed of 12 members which shall include 1 bishop and may include priests, deacons, lay persons, seminary faculty or staff, representatives from Episcopal schools, and others with expertise in a variety of disciplines especially artificial intelligence (AI), liturgy, and ethics; and be it further

Resolved, That the Task Force be mandated with considering the relationship of The Episcopal Church with generative AI, including but not limited to:

• The use of generative AI in writing and preparing sermons and liturgies;
• The use of generative AI in hiring;
• The use of generative AI in writing theological and academic works;
• The use and potential misuse of The Episcopal Church’s copyrighted materials; and
• Investigation of best practices with regard to generative AI from various sources, including other Christian denominations and nonprofit organizations.

And be it further

Resolved, That the Task Force include guidelines for The Episcopal Church for the use of generative AI, including beneficial and detrimental uses, in its report; and be it further

Resolved, That the membership of this task force be appointed by the Presiding Bishop and the President of the House of Deputies; and be it further

Resolved, That the Task Force begin its work no later than January 1, 2025, with the Task Force concluding its work at the conclusion of the 82nd General Convention, unless its mandate is extended by the 82nd Convention; and be it further

Resolved, That the Joint Budget Committee of Executive Council consider a budget allocation of $50,000 for the implementation of this resolution.

Motion carried

Substitute resolution adopted

(Communicated to the House of Bishops in HD Message #47)