Farewell to Bishop Sisk - Episcopal Diocese of New York

Cathedral
Bishop Sisk: Guardian of the Cathedral Close
This spring, Cathedral community and friends reflect on the ministry of Bishop
Sisk as he prepares to retire to his farm in upstate New York. Bishop Sisk was
instrumental in furthering the reputation of the Cathedral as the “Green Cathedral”,
and has spoken often and eloquently about stewardship of the Earth. American
literature is full of writing about the grandeur and power of the land; and in
prose sometimes lush, sometimes spare, reminded us that mankind is never separate from
the forest, stone, elements and creatures. In the words of Henry David Thoreau inducted
into the Cathedral American Poets Corner in 1988:
This is a delicious evening, when the whole body is one sense, and imbibes
delight through every pore. I go and come with a strange liberty in Nature,
a part of herself. As I walk along the stony shore of the pond in my
shirt-sleeves, though it is cool as well as cloudy and windy, and I see nothing
special to attract me, all the elements are unusually congenial to me. The
bullfrogs trump to usher in the night, and the note of the whip-poor-will is
borne on the rippling wind from over the water. Sympathy with the fluttering
alder and poplar leaves almost takes away my breath; yet, like the lake,
my serenity is rippled but not ruffled. These small waves raised by the evening
wind are as remote from storm as the smooth reflecting surface. Though it
is now dark, the wind still blows and roars in the wood, the waves still dash,
and some creatures lull the rest with their notes. The repose is never complete.
The wildest animals do not repose, but seek their prey now; the fox,
and skunk, and rabbit, now roam the fields and woods without fear. They are
Nature’s watchmen — links which connect the days of animated life.
— Walden Pond (1854)
The Cathedral salutes this steward of the community, of the Close and of the land.
“Tree of Life” Conference on
Israel and Palestine at St.
Michael’s Church, Manhattan
An observant Jewish layman mounted the pulpit at the Nov 11 Sunday morning
Service at St. Michael’s Church on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. Dr. Mark
Braverman, a trained clinical psychologist and specialist in crisis intervention
and trauma recovery, delivered a sermon calling upon American Christians to
hear, and respond to, the cry for justice and peace from Palestinians living under
Israeli occupation in the West Bank and Gaza.
Dr. Braverman, who now devotes himself full-time to the cause for peace in historic
Palestine, is the author of Fatal Embrace: Christians, Jews, and the Search for Peace in the Holy
Land. His sermon and after-church forum represented the concluding presentations at
the third annual New York Interfaith “Tree of Life” Conference on Israel and Palestine,
hosted by St. Michael’s, November 10-11.
St. Michael’s Interim Pastor Elizabeth Maxwell told the approximately 120 participants
in the weekend’s events: “We gather as an interfaith community to learn more about
justice, peace and human rights for those who live in a land our many traditions call ‘holy.’
We consider as well the use of our tax dollars to support of the occupation, and our responsibility
as citizens and people of conscience. I hope this conference marks the beginning
of a deeper engagement with these issues, and with each other.”
The Tree of Life Conference is a program of the Tree of Life Educational Fund, a
not-for-profit organization affiliated with the First Congregational Church, United Church
of Christ, Old Lyme, CT. Conference literature describes its purpose: “… to bear witness
to a story of injustice that is little known and largely untold among Americans. The
Dr. Mark Braverman, left, with the Rev. Elizabeth G. Maxwell, Interim Pastor at St. Michael’s.
Conference [brings] before American audiences voices of Palestinian, as well as Israeli
and American peacemakers, who offer hope in the midst of the pain of dislocation, blockade
and occupation; and [seeks] the support of American people in the non-violent struggle
for justice for the Palestinian community.”
An afternoon of presentations by Palestinian and Israel peacemakers, including academics,
community activists, former members of the Israeli military, was offered on Saturday,
November 10, followed by a reception. The day concluded with a concert of Middle
Eastern music, featuring musicians from the region performing on traditional
instruments.
More information about Tree of Life program, including travel opportunities may be found
at www.tolef.org.
14 THE EPISCOPAL NEW YORKER Winter 2013 www.episcopalnewyorker.com