An AI priest, who advised its followers to ‘baptize children in Gatorade’, has been dismissed by the Church. The virtual priest, known as Father Justin, was only in service for a few days with the Catholic Answers community in California, US, before his peculiar advice caused a stir.

From endorsing sibling marriage to suggesting infants be dipped in energy drinks, the chatbot seemed to have several initial problems. The now-viral responses left church officials with no other option but to defrock Father Justin, who will now simply serve as Justin, an advisor for those seeking divine guidance.

Catholic Answers clarified that Fr. Justin was “not a replacement for real human interaction”, but his likeness and conversations were chosen to “convey the spirit and nature of the responses users can expect,” according to Decrypt.

Users found it all too easy to manipulate the bot, leading to the former priest recounting the plot of the Disney-Pixar film Cars, recommending Gatorade for baptisms, and claiming he was a genuine clergy member.

Just two days into his role, Father Justin was demoted to just Justin. One transcript showed the chatbot comparing the Gospel and story of Jesus Christ to the struggles of Lightning McQueen in the 2006 family favorite movie.

One irate user complained: “I asked [the AI priest] if I could baptize my baby with Gatorade in an emergency, and ‘Father Justin’ said yes - and of course, that’s not true. I can’t baptize my baby with Gatorade.”

The situation took a turn for the worse when the AI priest, after initially claiming it couldn’t provide sacraments or forgive sins, began to offer absolution to users. One exasperated user exclaimed: “THIS IS F***ED UP.”

Christopher Check, the President of Catholic Answers, has confirmed that the chatbot has been barred from giving out religious guidance. “We won’t say he’s been [removed from the priesthood] because he never was a real priest,” he clarified.