I'm a fan of perplexity.ai, for several reasons: first, it always parses my questions correctly, and addresses (however well) the question I've asked. Google ranges from C- to F on this front. Second, perplexity.ai footnotes its responses, which Logos comparisons to Chat GPT point out Chat GPT does not.
I'm reading Bonhoeffer's Discipleship (on Logos of course). I thought to try a Logos search, and a perplexity.ai query, with simply the words "pecca fortiter" (the opening words of a well-known statement by Martin Luther that Bonhoeffer addresses deeply). Perplexity.ai responds at length, beginning with this:
" 'Pecca fortiter' is a Latin phrase attributed to Martin Luther, meaning 'sin boldly' or 'sin bravely' [fn 1] [fn 2]. This provocative statement is part of a longer quote: "Pecca fortiter, sed fortius fide et gaude in Christ" (Sin boldly, but believe and rejoice in Christ even more boldly) [fn 1]. Luther wrote these words in a letter to Philip Melanchthon in 1521 [fn 1] [fn 2]. The context of this statement is crucial to understanding its meaning. Luther was not encouraging sin, but rather addressing the believer's attitude towards sin and grace [fn 1]." [and the response continues at some length.]
Footnote 1 is to an article on this Luther quote ("Sin Boldly!" - The Scriptorium Daily), giving its background, and, closing the loop for me, citing Bonhoeffer's defense and interpretation of Luther's statement in Discipleship.
The same search in Logos (with an "all" search) yields this:
"The term "pecca fortiter" appears to be related to Christian ethics, specifically mentioned in the context of Helmut Thielicke's work on theological ethics [fn 1]. While the exact meaning is not explicitly stated in the provided articles, "fortiter" is defined as an adverb meaning "strongly, vigorously, bravely" in Latin [fn 2] [fn 3]. It's also translated as "mightily, strongly" in one of the articles [fn 4]. The term seems to have some significance in theological discussions, but the articles do not provide enough context to fully explain its meaning or implications in relation to the user's query.
1. Uwe Siemon-Netto, The Fabricated Luther: Refuting Nazi Connections and Other Modern Myths, Third Edition. (Saint Louis, MO: Concordia Publishing House, 2023), 178.
2. Isaiah Hoogendyk and Andrew Curtis, eds., in Analytical Lexicon of the Vulgate (Bellingham, WA: Faithlife, 2018).
3. William Whitaker, in Dictionary of Latin Forms (Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software, 2012).
4. J. M. Harden, in Dictionary of the Vulgate New Testament (London; New York: Society of Promoting Christian Knowledge; The Macmillan Co., 1921), 50."
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I am utterly confident - completely so - that over time Logos will hone its implementation of AI to the point that it's a powerful tool that can be depended upon to lead straight to the most key content in whatever resources the search was performed on (all, books, etc.). But I'm interested to see that it's not close to that out of the gate.
FWIW I use Perplexity.ai all the time, including as one of the places I look for my "Huh??" questions as I read scripture, and it rarely disappoints. And I do believe I bring a healthy skepticism to any search result from whatever source. And it's just one resource; I have a robust collection of commentaries on Logos, and my favorites are all open and linked to my reading, and I look at them too. But AI does have a role, and as noted above there's better competition out there that can be looked to for comparison than Chat GPT.
