After St. Paul entered Greece he went to Athens — the educational, cultural, economic and social capital of the country. While there he gave a sermon where he drew upon Greek poetry and philosophy during the preaching. The Sermon flopped. After Athens he went to another major city, Corinth, but there he changed his preaching style. We proclaim Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those who are called Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. Not philosophy but the message of the cross — a message of sacrifice, of fidelity, of obedience, of love — was how the gospel would come alive. So today, effective evangelization is not a slick ad campaign but simply the cross of Christ.
