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When I ask you, "Do you believe in religion?" I do not mean to ask you whether you believe in creeds, and ordinances, and Church organisations. When I want to know whether a man believes in religion or not, I do not ask, "Do you believe in Sunday, and in ministers, and in the Bible" For a man may believe in all these things, and not believe in religion. And a man might not believe in any of them, and yet believe in religion. If I were going to question you to ascertain whether you were a Christian or not, I would say, "Do you, sir, believe in love, as the transcendent element of manhood?" Where is the man who would say "No" to that? Where, in the whole round of creation, would be found a man who, if the question were put to him, "Do you believe in the validity, and authority, and divinity of love?" I would not say, "I believe?" That is the first question in the catechism. The second is, "Do you believe in joy, supernal, ineffable, Divine, bred in the soul of man, and in the highest realm of the soul? Do you believe that all the faculties of man, like the pipes of an organ, conspire in ringing out sweet symphonies?" If the question were asked, "Do you believe in joy?" where is the man who would not say, "I believe?" "Do you believe in peace?" "I believe." "Do you believe in long-suffering?" "I believe." "Do you believe in gentleness?" "I believe." "Do you believe in goodness?" "I believe." "Do you believe in faith?" "I believe." "Do you believe in meekness and temperance?" "I believe." Answer me, hungry heart — you that have wandered from church to church, and have not been fed; you that have tried pleasure, and aspiration, and ambition, without being satisfied, and have become wearied and discouraged; you that have listened to discourse on discourse, and enigma on enigma, and had spectacular views which purported to be religion, and have fallen off, wearily saying, "Ah, there is no religion in these things!" — is there no religion? Do not you believe in religion? If you were to see a man filled with the fruit of the Spirit, would you not believe in that man? "Yes," you say, "but there is no such man." But is not that an ambition which every man may most worthily set before him, and press toward with all the power that is in him? Is not that worth living for? And if men come together, and say, "We will bear with each other, and will uphold each other, and together we will press toward that high conception of manhood," is not that a worthy reason for coming together? Is there anything in pleasure, or business, or citizenship which is comparable in dignity and worth to coming together earnestly bent on having the fruit of the Spirit as it is here depicted?... I spread before you this reality of love, and joy, and peace, and long-suffering, and gentleness, and goodness, and faith, and meekness, and temperance, and say, "This is what you are to be and to do. And you can help each other to be and to do that. Take hold of hands. Avail yourselves of what advantage there may be in social power. If you are wanderers and discouraged, join one with another that you may inspire each other with hope and find rest." This is the whole economy of religion. It is the whole philosophy of the Church.

(H. W. Beecher.)

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KJV: But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,

WEB: But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith,