John 20.19-31 (9th Matins Gospel)

19When therefore it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and when the doors were locked where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the middle and said to them, “Peace be to you.”

20When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. The disciples therefore were glad when they saw the Lord. 21Jesus therefore said to them again, “Peace be to you. As the Father has sent me, even so I send you.” 22When he had said this, he breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit! 23If you forgive anyone’s sins, they have been forgiven them. If you retain anyone’s sins, they have been retained.”

24But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, wasn’t with them when Jesus came.

25The other disciples therefore said to him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see in his hands the print of the nails, put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.”

26After eight days, again his disciples were inside and Thomas was with them. Jesus came, the doors being locked, and stood in the middle, and said, “Peace be to you.” 27Then he said to Thomas, “Reach here your finger, and see my hands. Reach here your hand, and put it into my side. Don’t be unbelieving, but believing.”

28Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!”

29Jesus said to him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.”

30Therefore Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book; 31but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in his name.

1 Corinthians 3.9-17 (Epistle)

9For we are God’s fellow workers. You are God’s farming, God’s building.

10According to the grace of God which was given to me, as a wise master builder I laid a foundation, and another builds on it. But let each man be careful how he builds on it. 11For no one can lay any other foundation than that which has been laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12But if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay, or straw, 13each man’s work will be revealed. For the Day will declare it, because it is revealed in fire; and the fire itself will test what sort of work each man’s work is. 14If any man’s work remains which he built on it, he will receive a reward. 15If any man’s work is burned, he will suffer loss, but he himself will be saved, but as through fire.

16Don’t you know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you? 17If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him; for God’s temple is holy, which you are.

Colossians 1.12-18 (Epistle, Image)

12giving thanks to the Father, who made us fit to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light, 13who delivered us out of the power of darkness, and translated us into the Kingdom of the Son of his love, 14in whom we have our redemption, the forgiveness of our sins.

15He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16For by him all things were created in the heavens and on the earth, visible things and invisible things, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things have been created through him and for him. 17He is before all things, and in him all things are held together. 18He is the head of the body, the assembly, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things he might have the preeminence.

Matthew 14.22-34 (Gospel)

22Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go ahead of him to the other side, while he sent the multitudes away. 23After he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into the mountain by himself to pray. When evening had come, he was there alone. 24But the boat was now in the middle of the sea, distressed by the waves, for the wind was contrary. 25In the fourth watch of the night, Jesus came to them, walking on the sea. 26When the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, “It’s a ghost!” and they cried out for fear. 27But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Cheer up! It is I! Don’t be afraid.”

28Peter answered him and said, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the waters.”

29He said, “Come!” Peter stepped down from the boat and walked on the waters to come to Jesus. 30But when he saw that the wind was strong, he was afraid, and beginning to sink, he cried out, saying, “Lord, save me!”

31Immediately Jesus stretched out his hand, took hold of him, and said to him, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?” 32When they got up into the boat, the wind ceased. 33Those who were in the boat came and worshiped him, saying, “You are truly the Son of God!”

34When they had crossed over, they came to the land of Gennesaret.

Luke 9.51-56, 10.22-24 (Gospel, Image)

51It came to pass, when the days were near that he should be taken up, he intently set his face to go to Jerusalem 52and sent messengers before his face. They went and entered into a village of the Samaritans, so as to prepare for him. 53They didn’t receive him, because he was traveling with his face set toward Jerusalem. 54When his disciples, James and John, saw this, they said, “Lord, do you want us to command fire to come down from the sky and destroy them, just as Elijah did?”

55But he turned and rebuked them, “You don’t know of what kind of spirit you are.

56For the Son of Man didn’t come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them.” They went to another village.

22Turning to the disciples, he said, “All things have been delivered to me by my Father. No one knows who the Son is, except the Father, and who the Father is, except the Son, and he to whomever the Son desires to reveal him.”

23Turning to the disciples, he said privately, “Blessed are the eyes which see the things that you see, 24for I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see the things which you see, and didn’t see them, and to hear the things which you hear, and didn’t hear them.”

Translation of the Image Not-Made-By-Hands of our Lord Jesus Christ from Edessa to Constantinople (944)

The Third “Feast of the Savior” in August While the Lord was preaching in Palestine, his fame reached a king Avgar of Edessa, who suffered from leprosy. Avgar sent a messenger named Ananias to ask whether the Lord could heal his illness. The king also charged Ananias, if he was unable to bring back Jesus Himself, to bring back a likeness of Him. When Ananias found Jesus, the Lord told him that he could not come to Edessa since the time of His passion was at hand. But he took a cloth and washed His face, miraculously leaving a perfect image of His face on the cloth. Ananias brought the holy image back to the king, who reverently kissed it. Immediately his leprosy was healed, save for a small lesion that remained on his forehead. Later the Apostle Thaddeus came to Edessa, preaching the gospel, and Avgar and his household were baptized, at which time his remaining leprosy vanished. The king had the holy likeness mounted on wood and displayed above the city gate for all to revere. But Avgar’s grandson returned to idolatry, and the Bishop of Edessa had the image hidden in the city wall to prevent it from being defiled. Many years later, when the Persian king Chosroes besieged Edessa, the Bishop Eulabius was told in a vision to find the sealed chamber, whose location had been forgotten. The holy icon was found, completely incorrupt, and by its power the Persian army was driven off. In the year 944 the image was brought to Constantinople and enshrined in the Church of the Theotokos called the Pharos. This is the event commemorated today.

Martyr Diomedes the Physician of Tarsus in Cilicia (298)

He is one of the Holy Unmercenary Physicians, a physician who practiced in Tarsus during the reign of Diocletian. Around 288 he came to Nicaea, where he healed many bodies by his medical arts and many souls through his preaching of the Gospel of Christ. The Emperor Diocletian sent men to arrest him, but when they arrived they found that he had already reposed. They cut off his head to take it back to the Emperor, and for this abomination were all struck blind. When Diocletian saw St Diomedes’ head, he ordered the men to return it to the body from which they had taken it. As soon as they had done so, their sight was restored.