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Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month.
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“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her.
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where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth.
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When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.
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In a loud voice she exclaimed: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear!
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But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?
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As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy.
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Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her!”
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Mary’s Song
And Mary said: “My soul glorifies the Lord
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and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
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for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed,
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He has performed mighty deeds with his arm; he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.
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He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty.
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He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful
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Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months and then returned home.
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The Birth of John the Baptist
When it was time for Elizabeth to have her baby, she gave birth to a son.
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Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown her great mercy, and they shared her joy.
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but his mother spoke up and said, “No! He is to be called John.”
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They said to her, “There is no one among your relatives who has that name.”
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Then they made signs to his father, to find out what he would like to name the child.
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Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue set free, and he began to speak, praising God.
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Zechariah’s Song
His father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied:
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He has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David
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(as he said through his holy prophets of long ago),
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salvation from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us—