The Very Rev. James A. Kowalski has been dean of the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine for nearly seven years. In all that time, he has never heard its great organ played during a worship service.
On Sunday, he will finally have his chance.
So will countless congregants and visitors as the Episcopal cathedral is formally rededicated. Everyone is invited to the 11 a.m. service, though the cathedral advises the public to arrive at least an hour early to claim passes for unreserved seats. At least 3,000 people are expected to attend.
The rededication signifies the return of the whole cathedral ”” all 601 feet of it ”” to useful life.
Would that St John the Divine were spiritually cleansed. May the Lord shine His face, lift His countenance upon them, expose the darkness, grant repentence and restore TEC to His Dear Son.
Allegorically reminiscent of the whitewashed tomb, no?
I spent three years at the Cathedral in the 1990s, one for field placement and two on staff of the Diocese of New York. Last February, I walked through the crossing and the apse chapels for the first time in ten years, after they had already been restored. The place could not have been more evocative of the holy. Of course, the building is only part of the story of any community of faith, but this one tells a wonderful story of the presence of God with us in the language of the people of New York. From the 80′ apse columns descending an equal 80 feet into bedrock to the tiniest statues of Christian saints on the pulpit or the choir walls, the artists who built the Cathedral proclaim the Gospel and rooted their work in Scripture (The theme of Revelation dominates). It’s too large and complex to trapped by any one dean’s or bishop’s agenda, so I quickly learned to ignore those things I didn’t like. They are like grass and pass away (as will the Cathedral one day, no doubt). The Christian symbols were always dominant and the staff I worked with knew Christ and cared very much to be faithful servants of the Gospel. I give thanks for the opportunity to worship and serve there, and for the ability of the Cathedral’s stewards to bring about such a restoration for the inspiration it will give to others.
Dirk
Thanks Dirk. I’ve been to St. John’s twice and the National Cathedral a few times… They are truly evocative of the holy–not unlike walking into St. Peter’s Basilica… We must remember that, as places, they are always potentially full. It is the hirelings and charlatans who will answer for their gross misuse of these great edifices.
Do they have an “ecumenical chapel” like Grace Cathedral, San Francisco? One of our staff visited there recently and said they have a Buddha, Menorah, and other anti-Christian symbols prominently displayed.
My one and only visit to St. John the Divine was an experience of marked contrast. The physical space, the architecture, the sense of the holy imbued within the walls was tangible and awe-inspiring. I’m sure the restoration is truly breathtaking. The Dean’s anti-Bush-left-wing-rant of a sermon, coupled with the invitation to join the cathedral’s delegation to the Pride parade later that afternoon (to support TEC’s float featuring +VGR no less) made me wonder why God would allow such mockery within His walls. Sad, sad, sad.
[i] The rededication signifies the return of the whole cathedral — all 601 feet of it — to useful life. [/i]
Another Elton John party?
I visited St John’s with a Japanese friend. She is Buddhist. When she saw a Shinto shrine structure in the building, she was horrified and walked out. Her father-in-law, head of a Buddhist temple, would not allow such things in his building, she said. My own hackles were raised when I encounted Gandhi carved into the altar rails of the High Altar, no less, along with the great British saints and a French Freemasons’ plaque in a side chapel. Then I found the Keith Haring artwork, and I too walked out. This is no longer a Christian place of worship.
Nearly all of the items in the choir referred to above have been there for decades (prior even to Dean Pike). In the Choir there are two 7 ft menorah given by Adolph Ochs of the NY Times some decades ago. I’m not sure how those are Anti-Christian (#5) as Jesus was Jewish, too. There is an oriental carpet (the type of carpet Muslims use for prayer) given by Atatürk, the founder of modern Turkey. He died in 1938, so I’m not sure how that counts as a recent innovation. The carpet lays near the stone from the tomb of St John the Divine in Ephesus (Turkey). Incidentally, ordinands would kneel on that stone when ordained to the priesthood. I’m not sure of the history of the Shinto prayer chests. I agree – what’s their point? However, Cardinals, patriarchs, and Abps of Canterbury have preached and prayed in their proximity without running for the hills, so I’m not going to lose sleep over their presence.
If I recall correctly, Billy Graham was inspired to embrace his vocation after hearing Anglican Evangelist Bryan Green preach at the Cathedral in the late ’40s. (At least, that’s what Canon Green said.) A very orthodox priest/mentor of mine once said that the finest sermon he ever heard preached on the Trinity was by MLK at the Cathedral on a Trinity Sunday.
As for sermons preached in the Cathedral – yeah, some have really frustrated me. Others have really inspired me. I think that’s probably true of any Cathedral. It’s in the nature of a Cathedral of that scope to be comprehensive and push the boundaries. However, I find the orthodoxy tends to pull the reigns back in. I don’t think any parish, much less a cathedral, based on the ‘newsworthy’ things they do, but the overall ministry undertaken. A true cathedral is more than a large parish, but a center of spirituality for the diocese and the city as a whole.
Nothing wrong with a menorah in church. Nor is it a recent innovation. Scandinavia has some prominent 15th century examples. Moreover, the diagonal 7-branched candelabra traditionally used at morning prayer services seem to have menoral overtones.
No. 5 – There is an interfaith Aids Chapel at Grace Cathedral, to the right as one enters. Sorry that the Menorah and other symbols offend you, but they are hardly “anti-Christian”. Grace Cathedral is the third Grace Church. The first was a white wooden church near the waterfront dating from 1849. The nest Grace church was a large Romanesque structure built in 1860 and destroyed in the Quake and Fire of 1906. The Crockers, the family who had one of the great mansions on top of Nob Hill, donated the block on which their mansion stood (also destroyed in 1906) to the Church. Grace Church moved up to the top of the hill and became the Cathedral. The cornerstone was laid in 1907, and the church was completed in 1965. come and visit it. No. 5, I think you would be pleased to see that it is quite catholic in orientation.