TORONTO (CCN) — Jesuit Father Gordon Rixon uses ChatGPT for his theology of reconciliation course at Regis College to create a conversation between two avatars — an Anishinaabe and a 17th-century Jesuit missionary — who discuss the role of religion in their respective cultures.
Father Rixon, Regis College president and an associate professor of theology, said artificial intelligence is an “interesting dialogue partner” and he uses it to invite students to engage with the course material.
“It creates a safe space for people to interact,” he said.
Instructors at Catholic theology schools in Canada are addressing the use of artificial intelligence tools this upcoming academic year in different ways. Some schools leave it to their instructors to decide whether to use AI. While Father Rixon has embraced AI in his teaching, other instructors say inconsistency in academic policy makes it challenging to develop best practices.
The policy at Seminary of Christ the King in Mission, B.C., “prohibits seminarians from using generative AI in courses unless teachers explicitly permit it.” Generative AI is a technology capable of creating text, photos and audiovisual content when prompted.
Because St. Augustine’s Seminary in Toronto is affiliated with the University of Toronto, it follows the university’s academic policies. The University of Toronto does not allow the use of AI detection software given the possibility of false positives or false negatives.
Josephine Lombardi, academic dean at St. Augustine’s Seminary, said this has left seminary faculty feeling frustrated.
“If we suspect there is a temptation to use AI and we can’t use any AI plagiarism-detection software, we’re rethinking assessment,” said Lombardi.
Instead of a few weighted writing-based assessments, this means more oral exams, quizzes, short papers, case studies with practical applications, self-reflection and group presentations.
“I find it’s usually in the oral exam that I can tell if somebody has retained the content,” she said.
She said her concern as dean is retention of content, citing research that students tend to better retain what they create.
“I struggle with thoughts of AI, especially around critical thinking skills, organizing our thoughts, being original with our thoughts,” she added. “And I’m concerned that some people may be using AI as a shortcut.”
However, instead of a “fear-based approach,” Lombardi said she would welcome more concrete guidance and examples around assessment methods, so faculty across the country know how to best navigate the use of AI in post-secondary education.
“The majority [of faculty at St. Augustine’s Seminary] are not allowing the use of AI … because we teach philosophy and theology, and the study of philosophy is designed to help you think,” Lombardi said. “And we want people to develop those thinking skills.”
Canadian Catholic News reached out to the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities in Canada. In an email response, President and Chair Gerry Turcotte wrote that this issue is “top of the list” for the association.
He said the association plans to have “a detailed conversation on this topic” at its meeting in October.
Lombardi said she attended a recent Association of Theological Schools conference in Chicago, where “AI was a big topic.” The conference included a workshop on Pope Leo XIV’s encyclical, “Magnifica Humanitas,” in which the pope dedicates multiple sections to the impact of artificial intelligence on education.
“Educating people about the use of AI, then, involves teaching them to decide when and for what purpose it ought not to be used,” he writes.
Lombardi said she saw “a lot of frustrated deans and others” at the conference asking “how do we get ahead of [AI]? How do we deal with it? … On the one hand, AI-proof assignments, but on the other hand, AI-friendly assignments.”
“Magnifica Humanitas” was released May 15, the 135th anniversary of Pope Leo XIII’s landmark encyclical “Rerum Novarum,” which responded to the transformations of the Industrial Revolution.
Mariela Torroba Hennigen is is an Argentine-Brazilian writer and Gracie Award-winning journalist based in Toronto.
This report was produced during CCN’s God in the City Catholic Journalism Seminar, Aug. 9-15, 2026.
