Negotiating religious authority in the age of AI : Ulama and madrasah students in Mindanao

Abstract

In Islam, ulama refers to individuals who are learned in the Qur’an, the Sunna, and the Islamic sciences, guiding Muslims in learning and practicing their faith. With increasing numbers of madrasah students employing AI tools like ChatGPT and Google Gemini, there are concerns about whether the authority of the ulama is being undermined or replaced. There is very limited previous research exploring how Salafi ulama have responded to the trend of AI in religious knowledge seeking or how it has affected the student-ulama relationship, especially within the Philippine context. The purpose of this study is to examine how Salafi ulama and madrasah students in General Santos City and Sarangani Province are negotiating religious authority in the age of AI. A qualitative phenomenological design was used, based upon Heidi Campbell's Religious-Social Shaping of Technology (RSST). Interviews were conducted with ten madrasah students and two Salafi ulama via Zoom. Thematic analysis was employed using a six-phase process. Findings indicate that students employ AI due to its availability, privacy, and convenience; however, they continue to view the ulama as their primary source of religious guidance. In turn, the ulama see AI as conditional, providing additional research material that can only be validated through a comparison with the Quran and Sunnah. They also assert that sanad, ijtihad, and ijma cannot be replicated by AI answers. Ultimately, the findings demonstrate that AI tools will not replace the authority of the ulama but rather will shape how that authority is exercised. As such, this provides new empirical evidence for both Islamic studies and digital religion scholars working in the Philippine Muslim community.