The birth of Jesus Christ took place as follows:--His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, but, before the marriage took place, she found herself to be with child by the power of the Holy Spirit.

He had been dwelling upon this, when an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. "Joseph, son of David," the angel said, "do not be afraid to take Mary for your wife, for her child has been conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Already 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.

"Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

Give to him who asks of you; and, from him who wants to borrow from you, do not turn away.

I, however, say to you--Love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you,

And, when you pray, you are not to behave as hypocrites do. They like to pray standing in the Synagogues and at the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. There, I tell you, is their reward!

But, when one of you prays, let him go into his own room, shut the door, and pray to his Father who dwells in secret; and his Father, who sees what is secret, will recompense him.

You, therefore, should pray thus--'Our Father, who art in Heaven, May thy name be held holy,

A sound tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a worthless tree bear good fruit.

Every tree that fails to bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

In fulfillment of these words in the Prophet Isaiah--'He took our infirmities on himself, and bore the burden of our diseases.'

But, that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins"--then he said to the paralyzed man-- "Get up, take up your bed, and return to your home."

When the crowd saw this, they were awe-struck, and praised God for giving such power to men.

Therefore pray to the Owner of the harvest to send laborers to gather in his harvest."

Calling his twelve Disciples to him, Jesus gave them authority over foul spirits, so that they could drive them out, as well as the power of curing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness.

The blind recover their sight and the lame walk, the lepers are made clean and the deaf hear, the dead, too, are raised to life, and the good news is told to the poor.

After dismissing the crowds, he went up the hill by himself to pray; and, when evening fell, he was there alone.

Again, I tell you that, if but two of you on earth agree as to what they shall pray for, whatever it be, it will be granted them by my Father who is in Heaven.

Then some little children were brought to Jesus, for him to place his hands on them, and pray; but the disciples found fault with those who had brought them.

"If you wish to be perfect," answered Jesus, "go and sell your property, and give to the poor, and you shall have wealth in Heaven; then come and follow me."

"Your mistake," replied Jesus, "is due to your ignorance of the Scriptures, and of the power of God.

Pray, too, that your flight may not take place in winter, nor on a Sabbath;

Then will appear the sign of the Son of Man in the heavens; and all the peoples of the earth will mourn, when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the heavens,' with power and great glory;

"It could have been sold for a large sum, and the money given to poor people."

You always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me.

Then Jesus came with them to a garden called Gethsemane, and he said to his disciples: "Sit down here while I go and pray yonder."

Watch and pray, that you may not fall into temptation. True, the spirit is eager, but human nature is weak."

Now there was in their Synagogue at the time a man under the power of a foul spirit, who called out:

In the morning, long before daylight, Jesus rose and went out, and, going to a lonely spot, there began to pray.

But that you may know that the Son of Man has power to forgive sins on earth"--here he said to the paralyzed man--

And with power to drive out demons.

And, as soon as Jesus had got out of the boat, he met a man coming out of the tombs, who was under the power of a foul spirit,

Jesus at once became aware of the power that had gone out from him, and, turning round in the crowd, he said: "Who touched my clothes?"

After he had taken leave of the people, he went away up the hill to pray.

"I tell you," he added, "that some of those who are standing here will not know death till they have seen the Kingdom of God come in power."

Jesus looked at the man, and his heart went out to him, and he said: "There is still one thing wanting in you; go and sell all that you have, and give to the poor, and you shall heave wealth in Heaven; then come and follow me."

And, whenever you stand up to pray, forgive any grievance that you have against any one, that your Father who is in Heaven also may forgive you your offenses."

"Is not the reason of your mistake," answered Jesus, "your ignorance of the Scriptures and of the power of God?

But one poor widow came and put in two farthings, which make a half-penny.

On this, calling his disciples to him, Jesus said: "I tell you that this poor widow has put in more than all the others who were putting money into the chests;

See to yourselves! They will betray you to courts of law; and you will be taken to Synagogues and beaten; and you will be brought up before governors and kings for my sake, that you may bear witness before them.

Pray, too, that this may not occur in winter.

Then will be seen the 'Son of Man coming in clouds' with great power and glory;

This perfume could have been sold for more than thirty pounds, and the money given to the poor."

You always have the poor with you, and whenever you wish you can do good to them; but you will not always have me.

Presently they came to a garden known as Gethsemane, and Jesus said to his disciples "Sit down here while I pray."

Going on a little further, he threw himself on the ground, and began to pray that, if it were possible, he might be spared that hour.

Watch and pray," he said to them all, "that you may not fall into temptation. True, the spirit is eager, but human nature is weak."

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."

He came as a witness--to bear witness to the Light that through him all men might believe.

He was not the Light, but he came to bear witness to the Light.