wfn.org | Episcopalians: Dean installed at Cathedral of St. John

[dmack@episcopalchurch.org]

April 16, 2002

2002-094

Episcopalians: Dean installed at Cathedral of St. John

by Neva Rae Fox

(ENS) In the shadows of the damage from a devastating December 
fire, the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine proved once 
again that life goes on in the Episcopal Church and in New York 
City.  On April 13, the Rev. Dr. James A. Kowalski was installed 
as the ninth dean of the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine 
in Manhattan. 

A Connecticut native, Kowalski was rector of St. Lukes, 
Darien, one of the largest Episcopal parishes in the country, 
prior to his call as dean of the largest Gothic cathedral in the 
world. Surrounded by his family, including his wife, the Rev. 
Anne Brewer, Kowalski was installed by Bishop Mark S. Sisk of 
New York, in a service that combined tradition, remembrances, 
and a look to the future.

Despite the vestiges of the fire that remain  a temporary 
organ and plywood window-coverings  colorful kites and banners 
unfurled over the heads of more than 1500 assembled as bishops, 
priests, and trustees processed to the joyful strains of a 
75-member choir.  Musical selections included Hear My 
Song from the show Songs For The New World by Tony 
Award-winner Jason Robert Brown.

Cuomo presents sermon

In his sermon, Mario Cuomo, former governor of New York, 
noted how well the new dean and the cathedral were matched. His 
dazzlingly diverse background suggests he will fit comfortably 
in our exquisite cultural mosaic.  Dean Kowalski is the son of 
first generation Americans of Russian and Polish ancestry.  His 
mother was Jewish and his father was Catholic: they settled 
their religious differences after they were married by both 
becoming Episcopalian, an extraordinary lesson in collaboration. 
In every way Dean Kowalski appears to be a fortuitously 
appropriate choice to continue the work in progress of the 
worlds largest Cathedral and one of our nations most 
cherished.

Cuomo conferred a detailed charge on Kowalski: Dean, here is 
my advice: just keep doing what you have been doing for all your 
years as a priest and what the Cathedral has been doing so 
wonderfully well for more than a century. The truth is that 
after 9/11 we need your kind of ministering more than we have in 
a long time. Dean, now more than ever, we need you and the 
Cathedral, harnessing the energies of love through thousands of 
beautiful words and even more beautiful acts of kindness and 
generosity. I believe God has blessed us with your presence. Deo 
Gratias. Shalom. Salaam Alaikum. Peace.

Presentations touching and humorous

During the installation service, there were many symbolic 
gifts presented to Kowalski, including water, a Bible, the Book 
of Common Prayer, a stole, a flowering branch, oil, and a bell 
from the Cathedral School. Chuckles rippled through the 
cathedral as Kowalski was presented with a calendar in the form 
of a Palm Pilot, and the keys to the cathedral, attached to a 
cumbersome heavy chain and wooden plank. 

He, in turn, presented Connecticut bishop Andrew Smith with a 
cross that survived the December conflagration and, as Kowalski 
described, could be the most photographed cross from the 
cathedral fire. 

The Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine is the seat of 
the Episcopal Diocese of New York. 

------

Neva Rae Fox is the Director of Communications for the Episcopal 
Diocese of New York.