Christianity Today 70th Anniversary Issue Asks: What Will AI and Weight-Loss Drugs Mean for the Church?

Christianity Today has published its 70th-anniversary issue, and the editors chose to look forward rather than back. The September-October 2026 edition identifies four issues they believe will define the church's next era: artificial intelligence, GLP-1 weight-loss drugs, anti-aging medical procedures, and the shifting landscape of the pro-life movement.

The issue arrives as AI tools have become common in churches, from sermon preparation software to pastoral counseling chatbots. The editors argue that the church has not yet developed a coherent theological framework for these tools, and that the gap is growing.

On GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy, the magazine explores a question that has surfaced in many congregations: are these medications a legitimate medical treatment, or do they represent a shortcut that bypasses the spiritual discipline of self-control? The issue includes perspectives from theologians, physicians, and pastors who have watched their congregants navigate this question.

The anti-aging section examines procedures and supplements marketed to extend healthy life, asking whether Christians should pursue longevity as a goal and what it means to age faithfully.

The pro-life section looks at how the movement has changed since the Supreme Court's 2022 Dobbs decision, with state-level abortion laws now varying widely and the political coalition that drove the movement showing signs of strain.

The magazine, founded in 1956 by Billy Graham, has published continuously for seven decades. Editor-in-Chief Russell Moore wrote in the issue's introduction that the questions facing the church today are not simpler than those of previous generations, but they are different, and the church needs to engage them directly.