The Holy Land—the land of Christ’s birth, life, crucifixion, and resurrection—marks a boundary artificial intelligence is unable to cross. Bethlehem, the Sea of Galilee, and Golgotha are not lost places like Eden, but sites you can still stand in. During this Lent and Pascha season, which also coincides with holy days across several traditions, instability across the Middle East has placed the Holy Land in the crosshairs of conflict, at times limiting access to its most venerable sites. It is a reminder of how fragile our sacred inheritance remains. At the same time, the Holy Land has a new significance that calls for protection—it is a frontier to what lies beyond an AI-centered world.
Sacred geography persists across faiths. The Ganges River, the Western Wall, and Mecca are places where the divine is not theorized, but sought. The Holy Land is sacred for its biblical history, and for what continues to happen there. As just one example, each Pascha the Holy Fire ceremony at the Church of the Resurrection in Jerusalem draws thousands who gather in anticipation. Inside the darkened church, the Patriarch enters the tomb alone. According to tradition, the flame appears within the tomb itself—received rather than lit—and is then brought out and passed from candle to candle, filling the church with light in moments. For the faithful, it is a miracle.
This is where AI stops.
Sacred sites endure because people are not simply seeking understanding—they are seeking a lived encounter.
Christina Moniodis is an attorney and business executive specializing in digital safety, AI governance, and corporate law. Her work includes First Amendment issues spanning media, religion, and data privacy. She is a graduate of Yale Law School and the University of Michigan.
