The Theological Implications of the Eliza Effect

Document Type : Research Paper

Author

Department of Ahl Al-Bayt Studies, Faculty of Theology and Ahl Al-Bayt Studies, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran

Abstract

The “Eliza Effect”—the propensity to attribute consciousness to insentient machines—serves as a critical juncture for theological inquiries into human nature within the technological age. Drawing on Joseph Weizenbaum’s foundational critique alongside contemporary scholarship by Noreen Herzfeld and Anne Foerst, this paper investigates the theological implications of anthropomorphic interaction with conversational AI. It posits that the Eliza Effect signifies an ontological crisis in contemporary self-understanding. The analysis proceeds through three interrelated dimensions: first, anthropomorphism as a creative impulse to replicate the human image; second, the erosion of the boundary between moral judgment and algorithmic calculation, which risks reducing ethics to mere functionality; and third, the manifestation of a latent longing for transcendence, wherein humanity attempts to reconstruct divine presence within the digital realm. Ultimately, this study argues that the Eliza Effect functions as a theological mirror, reflecting the modern condition’s desperate search for meaning, relationality, and the sacred amidst technological mediation.

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References

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Philosophy of Religion
Volume 23, Issue 2
July 2026
Pages 131-141

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