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<v SPEAKER_00>Today in the first reading, Saint Paul walks through Athens and discovers an altar with the inscription to an unknown god.

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<v SPEAKER_00>Think about that for a moment.

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<v SPEAKER_00>Athens was the intellectual center of the ancient world.

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<v SPEAKER_00>These people were educated, sophisticated, philosophical.

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<v SPEAKER_00>They had temples, statues, ideas, systems of thought.

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<v SPEAKER_00>They were searching for meaning everywhere.

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<v SPEAKER_00>And yet hidden in the middle of all that intelligentsia is an admission we still do not know.

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<v SPEAKER_00>So just in case, here's an altar to an unknown God.

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<v SPEAKER_00>Honestly, that altar still exists today.

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<v SPEAKER_00>People are still searching everywhere for something to feel that emptiness inside.

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<v SPEAKER_00>Some look for success, some look for it in money, in relationships, and things, in pleasure, in status, some in endless distractions.

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<v SPEAKER_00>We live in one of the most technological advanced moments in all of human history, and yet so many people are still restless, anxious, exhausted, and spiritually lost.

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<v SPEAKER_00>Why?

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<v SPEAKER_00>Well, because a human heart was made for more than what this world can give.

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<v SPEAKER_00>You know the famous quote from St.

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<v SPEAKER_00>Augustine.

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<v SPEAKER_00>He said it best, our hearts are restless until they rest in you, Lord.

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<v SPEAKER_00>What Paul recognizes in Athens is that beneath all the confusion, beneath all the noise, beneath all those false gods, there is still a real hunger for God.

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<v SPEAKER_00>And Paul does something very important.

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<v SPEAKER_00>He does not begin by insulting them, he begins by recognizing the search.

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<v SPEAKER_00>He tells them, The God that you are searching for is not far away.

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<v SPEAKER_00>In him we live and move and have our being.

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<v SPEAKER_00>That line is beautiful.

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<v SPEAKER_00>God is not distant, he is not hiding, he is not absent from our lives.

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<v SPEAKER_00>Even when people do not fully know him, they are often searching for him without even realizing it.

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<v SPEAKER_00>And then the gospel gives us the answer to that whole search.

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<v SPEAKER_00>Jesus says, When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you to all truth.

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<v SPEAKER_00>Notice Jesus says all truth, not a truth, not your truth, not whatever truth is convenient or whatever truth the world is trying to sell you.

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<v SPEAKER_00>The Holy Spirit leads us to truth.

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<v SPEAKER_00>And that truth has a face, Jesus Christ.

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<v SPEAKER_00>The world tells us to look inward and invent ourselves.

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<v SPEAKER_00>Jesus tells us to surrender ourselves.

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<v SPEAKER_00>The world says take changes.

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<v SPEAKER_00>Jesus says truth sets you free.

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<v SPEAKER_00>That is why some people mocked Paul when he preached the resurrection.

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<v SPEAKER_00>Because once you accept the Christ, that Christ truly rose from the dead, everything changes.

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<v SPEAKER_00>It means life has meaning.

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<v SPEAKER_00>It means eternity is real.

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<v SPEAKER_00>It means we were created for more than this world, for more than comfort, for success, for survival.

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<v SPEAKER_00>Maybe the most dangerous line in the reading is when some people say, We should like to hear you on this some other time.

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<v SPEAKER_00>In other words, later, not now, we're kind of busy.

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<v SPEAKER_00>That is one of the great temptations of the spiritual life.

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<v SPEAKER_00>Postponing conversion.

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<v SPEAKER_00>It's about convenience.

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<v SPEAKER_00>But the gospel always calls for a response now.

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<v SPEAKER_00>And scripture says that while some walked away, some did join him and became believers.

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<v SPEAKER_00>That's how faith spreads.

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<v SPEAKER_00>One heart at a time, one soul at a time, one person finally realizing the unknown God.

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<v SPEAKER_00>That unknown God that they have been searching for their whole life is Jesus Christ.

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<v SPEAKER_00>Today set your heart on him.

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<v SPEAKER_00>Allow him to set your heart on fire, to know the true God.

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<v SPEAKER_00>That God who is Jesus Christ sets you free in truth.

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<v SPEAKER_00>Amen.