City firefighters who battled a 2001 blaze in the Cathedral of St. John the Divine will help rededicate the upper Manhattan landmark on Sunday.

The members of New York's Bravest will join a procession of Episcopal bishops as the Gothic cathedral - the largest in the world - is completely reopened for the first time since the devastating Dec. 18, 2001, fire.

The blaze started in the cathedral's gift shop. Before it could be brought under control, it had damaged ancient tapestries and an 8,500-pipe organ.

The 601-foot-long cathedral - larger than the French cathedrals of Chartres and Notre Dame combined - had been halved in size by a temporary wall that concealed restoration work.

At Sunday's celebration, the 98-year-old Skinner organ will be played for the first time following a painstaking pipe-by-pipe restoration.

The restoration of the cathedral, built in 1892, also refurbished every inch of its limestone, marble and granite surfaces.

Two rare 17th century Barberini tapestries - part of a set of a dozen depicting the life of Jesus Christ - were restored in the cathedral's textile conservation lab.

To mark Sunday's rededication, the cathedral's music director, Bruce Neswick, will play a specially written hymn titled "The New Jerusalem."