College Prep II

How Students Can Thrive in Their Faith

On the first day of class, one of my former students, Hannah, found herself in a precarious situation: Should she speak up and defend her faith? Or would it be best to stay quiet? The professor had begun the class by explaining how—within thirty years—robots with artificial intelligence would take over the world. And the professor hoped that the intelligent robots would care for and protect their less-evolved human ancestors.

Hannah simply couldn't stay quiet. She raised her hand, and when the professor called on her, she asked, "How can physical robots develop self-consciousness?" The professor responded, "Do you actually believe there's a soul? What's...