But the angel said to him: " Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth shall bear you a son, whom you shall call by the name John.

He shall go before him in the spirit and with the power of Elijah, 'to reconcile fathers to their children' and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous, and so make ready for the Lord a people prepared for him."

"The Holy Spirit shall descend upon you," answered the angel, "and the Power of the Most High shall overshadow you; and therefore the child will be called 'holy,' and 'Son of God.'

And all who heard it kept it in mind, asking one another-- "What can this child be destined to become?" For the Power of the Lord was with him.

And also to offer the sacrifice enjoined in the Law of the Lord--'a pair of turtle-doves or two young pigeons.'

Already, indeed, the axe is lying at the root of the trees. Therefore every tree that fails to bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire."

On returning from the Jordan, full of the Holy Spirit, Jesus was led by the power of the Spirit through the Wilderness for forty days, tempted by the Devil.

"I will give you all this power, and the splendor of them; for it has been given into my hands and I give it to whom I wish.

Moved by the power of the Spirit, Jesus returned to Galilee. Reports about him spread through all that neighborhood;

'The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, For he has consecrated me to bring Good News to the poor, He has sent me to proclaim release to captives and restoration of sight to the blind, To set the oppressed at liberty,

Starting up, they drove Jesus out of the town, and led him to the brow of the hill on which their town stood, intending to hurl him down.

But Jesus used to withdraw to lonely places and pray.

On one of those days, when Jesus was teaching, some Pharisees and Doctors of the Law were sitting near by. (They had come from all the villages in Galilee and Judea, and from Jerusalem; and the power of the Lord was upon Jesus, so that he could work cures.)

But that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins"-- he spoke to the paralyzed man-- "To you I say, Get up, and take up your pallet, and go to your home."

Now about that time, Jesus went out, up the hill, to pray, and spent the whole night in prayer to God.

And every one in the crowd was trying to touch him, because a power went out from him which restored them all.

Then, raising his eyes and looking at his disciples, Jesus spoke as follows: "Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the Kingdom of God.

Bless those who curse you, pray for those who insult you.

Give, and others will give to you. A generous measure, pressed and shaken down, and running over, will they pour into your lap; For the measure that you mete will be meted out to you in return."

He may be compared to a man building a house, who dug, and went deep, and laid the foundation upon the rock. Then, when a flood came, the river swept down upon that house, but had no power to shake it, because it had been built well.

So his answer to the question was: "Go and report to John what you have witnessed and heard--the blind recover their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are made clean, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life, the Good News is told to the poor.

But, addressing him, Jesus said: "Simon, I have something to say to you." "Pray do so, Teacher," Simon answered; and Jesus began:

"Somebody touched me," said Jesus; "for I felt that power had gone out from me."

Jesus called the Twelve together, and gave them power and authority over all demons, as well as to cure diseases.

About eight days after speaking these words, Jesus went up the mountain to pray, taking with him Peter, John, and James.

"The harvest," he said, "is abundant, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray to the Owner of the harvest to send laborers to gather in his harvest.

Remember, I have given you the power to 'trample upon serpents and scorpions,' and to meet all the strength of the Enemy. Nothing shall ever harm you in any way.

One day Jesus was at a certain place praying, and, when he had finished, one of his disciples said to him: "Master, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples."

"When you pray," Jesus answered, "say--'Father, May thy named be held holy, thy Kingdom come.

As Jesus was saying this, a woman in the crowd, raising her voice, exclaimed: "Happy was the mother who bore you and nursed you!"

I will show you of whom you should be afraid. Be afraid of him who, after killing you, has the power to fling you into the Pit. Yes, I say, be afraid of him.

No, when you entertain, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind;

On his return the servant told his master all these answers. Then in anger the owner of the house said to his servant 'Go out at once into the streets and alleys of the town, and bring in here the poor, and the crippled, and the blind, and the lame.'

Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and never despair.

"Two men went up into the Temple Courts to pray. One was a Pharisee and the other a tax-gatherer.

Hearing this, Jesus said to him: "There is one thing still lacking in you; sell everything that you have, and distribute to the poor, and you shall have wealth in Heaven; then come and follow me."

But Zacchaeus stood forward and said to the Master: "Listen, Master! I will give half my property to the poor, and, if I have defrauded any one of anything, I will give him back four times as much."

He saw, too, a widow in poor circumstances putting two farthings into them.

On this he said: "I tell you that this poor widow has put in more than all the others;

Then will be seen the 'Son of Man coming in a cloud' with power and great glory.

Be on the watch at all times, and pray that you may have strength to escape all that is destined to happen, and to stand in the presence of the Son of Man."

And, when he reached the spot, he said to them: "Pray that you may not fall into temptation."

Then he withdrew about a stone's throw, and knelt down and began to pray.

"Why are you asleep?" he asked them. "Rise and pray, that you may not fall into temptation."

When I was with you day after day in the Temple Courts, you did not lay hands on me; but now your time has come, and the power of Darkness."

Now there was a man of the name of Joseph, who was a member of the Council, and who bore a good and upright character.

"What things do you mean?" asked Jesus. "Why, about Jesus of Nazareth," they answered, "who, in the eyes of God and all the people, was a Prophet, whose power was felt in both his words and actions;

And now I am myself about to send upon you that which my Father has promised. But you must remain in the city until you have been invested with power from above."