The Rev. Masud Ibn Syedullah Joins St. Andrew's Episcopal Church

The Rev. Masud Ibn Syedullah, TSSF, has joined St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church to serve as Priest and Pastoral Consultant as of Oct. 18.

“St. Andrew’s is a gracious, welcoming people with good spirit,” Father Syedullah said. “My goal is to prayerfully meet with the congregation to help it discern how God wants it to move forward in the future and how it can continue to faithfully serve in the community.”

“Father Syedullah is a remarkable pastoral force and we are most fortunate to have him with us,” said Richard Harrison, Junior Warden of St. Andrew’s. “His years of experience in faith formation and the development of congregational life are greatly needed as well as his sensitivity and compassion in matters pastoral.”

Father Syedullah has been a priest of the Episcopal Diocese of New York for nearly twenty-five years, and has served Episcopal parishes in various parts of the country for more than thirty-five years. Father Syedullah, both a musician and educator, has focused much of his ministry in the areas of Christian spiritual formation, music and worship, ecumenical, and interfaith ministries.

As an African-American born into a family with a Christian mother and a Muslim father, Father Syedullah has developed a keen awareness of and sensitivity for interfaith concerns. Much of his ministry involves bridge-building among people of different faith traditions, and helping Christians understand their call to be in positive relationship with people of other faiths and to work to end the ignorance, fear, and hatred done in the name of religion that fuel so much violence and destruction in today’s world.

He is one of the founding members of what is now the Episcopal-Muslim Relations Committee of the Episcopal Diocese of New York. The EMRC promotes and enables communication, understanding, mutual respect and cooperation between the Episcopal and Muslim communities within the Episcopal Diocese of New York.

Father Syedullah is currently the Chair of the EMRC and serves on the Ecumenical and Interfaith Commission, serves on the Commission on Ministry, and on the Advisory Board of The Episcopal New Yorker.

He is the founder and director of Roots & Branches: Programs for Spiritual Growth, (www.rootsandbranchesprograms.org), a resource to the Episcopal Diocese of New York and to the broader Church and other institutions. Roots & Branches provides conferences, workshops, retreats, pilgrimages, classes, and other services designed to offer guidance to those who seek to be more rooted in The Source, that they may be more fully themselves and offer life-giving service to others. These programs are offered nationally and internationally.

A member of the Third Order, Society of Saint Francis (TSSF), an Anglican/Episcopal Christian community inspired by the life and witness of St. Francis of Assisi, his ministry emphasizes themes of reconciliation, peacemaking, social justice, and respect for all of God’s creation.

Father Syedullah and his wife, Janice, have been married for 44 years. They are the parents of two adult daughters, Jasmine and Amina.

St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church has been a part of Brewster for more than 130 years. The church’s grey stone building on Prospect Street is a local landmark and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is home to the Brewster Theater Company and the Brewster Community Food Pantry. The parish is a warm and welcoming community.

The regular Sunday service of Holy Eucharist at St. Andrew’s is at 10 a.m. For more information about St. Andrew’s, call the church office at 845-279-4325.

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