Saint Sava (1175 or 1176 - January 12, 1235 or 1236), originally the prince Rastko Nemanjic (son of the Serbian king Stefan Nemanja and brother of Stefan Prvovencani, founder of the Serbian medieval state), is the first Serb archbishop (1219-1233) and the most important saint in the Serbian Orthodox Church.
Saint Sava is celebrated as the founder of the independent Serbian Orthodox Church and as patron saint of education and medicine among Serbs. His day is observed on January 27th of the Gregorian calendar (January 14th of the neo-Julian calendar still observed by the Serbian Church). Since the 1830's, Saint Sava has become the patron saint of Serb schools and schoolchildren. On his day, students partake in recitals in church.
The temple of Saint Sava in Belgrade, whose construction was planned in 1939, begun in 1985 and awaits completion by 2004 is the largest active Orthodox temple in the world today.
Thou O' sacred head, most glorious wonder-worker, Sava, hierarch of Christ, thou first in rank among the bishops of Serbia, protector and enlightener, trustworthy intercessor for all Christians before the Lord: we fall own before thee and pray: grant us to partake of thy love for God and neighbor, the love with which, in life, thy holy soul overflowed.
Shed the rays of truth upon us, enlighten our mind and heart with the light of Divine teaching, teach us to be thy faithful in imitating thee, so as to love God and our neighbor and to perform the Lord's commandments without error, so that we too might be thy children not only in name, but in our whole life.
Look down in thy loving kindness on each and every soul of those who honor thee in faith, seeking thy mercy and help; be unto us all a healer in our infirmities, a consoler in our sorrows, a visitor in our grief, a helper in our troubles and needs, and in the hour of our death, a merciful protector and defender, so that, aided by thy holy prayers, we sinners might be vouchsafed to inherit the salvation of the faithful and the Kingdom of Christ.
Program of our 50th Anniversary Concert
The 50th Anniversary Organizing Committee has been working hard on several fronts
The 50th Anniversary Organizing Committee has been working hard on several fronts. The Food sub-Committee has finalized menus for both days, and is now in the process of assigning tasks to the choir members. Advertising activities, as well as identifying sponsors is still underway. A number of Serbian businesses have already provided support, either monetary or gift items for our lottery. All supporters will be mentioned on our website, and in the concert programe.
The Organizing Committee is scheduled to visit the RBC Theatre (our concert venue) one last time to finalize the concert programe and participants' line-ups. This is a big undertaking, but we are certain that our choir can live up to the challenge of organizing an unforgettable weekend.
Something is in the air!
The big day is approaching, and we are working on perfecting our repertoir. Almost everybody is additionally motivated by the enthusiasm of our
Organizing Committee and our new director Janez Govednik.
This day is doubtlessly a historical one; the number of guestes invited,
the richness and diversity of the program, our well-known hospitality will guarantee that this event will be the most memorable of all
in our Serbian community.
Weddings, Activites September 2005
A new photo gallery , illustrating some of our activites in our very busy calender of events in September and October, was created.
Here are some of our activites in the next two months:
Church Fair on September 10,
Slava of our Church on September 11,
Annual Concert
on October 1/2,
Celebration of Father Michael Doders 25 Years in Toronto/Mississauga on October 16,
Trip to Cleveland on October 22/23
.
read more...
Janez Govednik is our new choir director
Nikola Manojlovich made decision to quit his position as St. Sava choir director.
We thank him for what he has done in his role as director of our choir…he made many sacrifices to
be there for us and as a result we have greatly matured in our singing under his careful
direction over the last 8 or so years. Our community has also greatly benefited. Thanks for everything Nikola!
Nikola knows that he is most welcome to come and sing with us at any time…and I hope that eventually he will be singing with us at Liturgies.
The executive board prepared an offer to Janez Govednik read more...
Our choir just got a new member!
Here you can read the breaking news and first reactions:
Angelina ( our soprano )and Danilo are proud parents of Milos who was born on July 13, 2005 at 9:28 p.m. weighing in 8 lbs (3.56 kgs).
Baby and mum are doing fine - we tested him and he is qulified for the base section.
Let’s welcome future choir member Milos…..Way to go Angelina (and Danilo)!!!
Weddings, Activites September 2005
A new photo gallery , illustrating some of our activites in our very busy calender of events in September and October, was created.
Here are some of our activites in the next two months:
Church Fair on September 10,
Slava of our Church on September 11,
Annual Concert
on October 1/2,
Celebration of Father Michael Doders 25 Years in Toronto/Mississauga on October 16,
Trip to Cleveland on October 22/23
.
read more...
It was a common impression that we did an excellent job at the concert in Pittsburgh.
We were one soul, one mind and one voice.
The repertoire selected by our director Nikola Manojlovic proved to be a successful hit.
The reaction of the audience showed that we came across well and that everybody was thrilled and impressed.
A more detailed report will follow very soon.
...photo report is available
The latest additions to our website…
We are trying to make our site better than ever with new sections, exciting new photo galleries, improved page layout,
and a bit of reorganisation! We do our best to add to the web site whenever possible. The news article on the
News page is updated
every month or so.
A new Photo Gallery
with some very nice
photos taken during our Easter service has also been added. We also expect more participation and more votes in our new section
Top List, where we monthly present 5 choral music pieces performed by famous orthodox choirs .
Please visit also our Top News section where all actual announcements regarding our current activities or
short terms changes will be posted on a regular basis.
We've added also a new section to our Web site, Archive, in which we provide archive of older information
regarding additions and changes to our site
Singing in the South Side on May 28 & 29,2005
The Holy Trinity Cathedral Choir of Pittsburgh,PA are 2005 Festival Hosts
and they have very grand plans for Singing in the South Side on May 28 &29,2005.
We look forward to our participation in the Festival and we are going to work very hard to attain the performance level
where we can be an inspiration for the people with whom we share our music.
Pittsburgh Information and Statistics
Established: 1758
City Population (2000): 369,879
County Population (2000): 1,281,666
Location: South Western Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the largest inland port in the U.S., providing access to the nation's 9,000 mile inland waterway system.
Allegheny County has more than 1,700 bridges and 720 are within the Pittsburgh city limits
Pittsburgh's beauty goes beyond mere scenery. The culture deftly mixes new and old; the choices and pace of urban
life with the comfort and tree-lined quiet from an earlier time.
Pittsburgh, the only city rated among the top five "Most Liveable" in three editions of the "Places Rated Almanac,"
is safe, clean, affordable and fun - qualities that both visitors and residents appreciate.
On Thurday, May 12, is St. Basil of Ostrog, the Wonderworker Day
Basil was born in Popova, a village in Hercegovina of simple and God-fearing parents. From his youth, he was filled with love for the Church of God and when he reached maturity,
he entered to the Monastery of the Dormition (Assumption) of the Birth-giver of God in Trebinje and
there received the monastic tonsure.
As a monk, he quickly became renown because of his genuine and
rare ascetical life. Saint Basil took upon himself mortification upon mortification each one heavier
and more difficult than the last. Later, against his will, he was elected and consecrated bishop of
Zahumlje and Skenderia.
As a hierarch, he first lived in the Monastery Tvrdosh and from there, as a
good shepherd, strengthened his flock in the Orthodox Faith, protecting them from the cruelty of the
Turks and the cunning ways of the Latins.
When Basil was exceedingly pressed by his enemies and, when
Tvrdosh was destroyed by the Turks, he moved to Ostrog, where he lived an austere ascetical life,
protecting his flock by his ceaseless and fervent prayer.
From "The Prologue from Ochrid" by Bishop Nikolai Velimirovic
Preparation for Easter
For Easter, the most important holiday celebrated, there is great preparation.
Families gather to celebrate the holiday with centuries-old cultural and food traditions
that follow the 40-day Lenten fast, during which they abstain from eating all animal products -
meat, dairy products, eggs and fish - to purify their spiritual senses in preparation for the Resurrection.
Activities the week before follow a schedule made by the housewife.
On Thursday before Easter, eggs may be dyed. All colors are used, but some eggs must be dyed red to symbolize
the coming happiness in the Resurrection.
In some homes, beautiful designs are carefully scraped on the surface of the dyed egg with a sharp tool.
This unusual technique is the Serbian style of decorating eggs.
The first egg to be dyed is put aside and called "Protector of the House" (Cuvarkuca).
It is placed beside the family icon and saved for Saint George's Day.
Some baking is done on Thursday,
so that nothing but essential duties are performed on Holy Friday.
The family will observe a strict fast and attend church, where they will kiss "The Grave of Christ" (Plastanica).
Fish and oil are omitted from the menu of Holy Friday, and only nuts, fruits and vegetables are eaten.
On Saturday, the house and much of the food for the coming day are prepared.
Dying of hard-cooked eggs is traditional, as is a game played at the Easter dinner
table with the eggs.
Those gathered pair off and tap the ends of their eggs together, and the person at the table with the last uncracked
egg is said to have good luck.
There are traditional dishes for the Easter meal.
A typical menu includes lamb soup, sarma, roast lamb, salad and delicious cakes.
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Weddings |
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P.Aksentijevic |
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Our Fall Concert |
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Garage Sale |
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Majko kosovska od zlata jabuko |
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Cvijan's seminar |
©SAINT SAVA SERBIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH CHOIR ( TORONTO– MISSISSAUGA )
Design and concept by Djordjo B. Vasic, 2005
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