A great man is one who collects knowledge the way a bee collects honey and uses it to help people overcome the difficulties they endure - hunger, ignorance and disease!
- Nikola Tesla

Remember, remember always, that all of us, and you and I especially, are descended from immigrants and revolutionists.
- Franklin Roosevelt

While their territory has been devastated and their homes despoiled, the spirit of the Serbian people has not been broken.
- Woodrow Wilson

Breze Ethno Choir

Breze is the female ethno choir of St. Sava Serbian Orthodox Church in Phoenix, AZ. Breze is composed completely of Stevan Hristich church choir members who have chosen to expand their singing talents outside of the liturgical environment.

This group was formed in early January of 2013 by Gordana Stojanovic Mihajlovich and its members all posses a deep passion for singing. They hope to grow and make this group a success not only in Phoenix, but also through Serbian communities across the world.

Breze hopes to further educate young people of the Serbian Diaspora about Serbian culture and traditions as well as present the heritage of Serbian ethnic music. Breze aspires to encourage younger generations to be get involved in their Serbian heritage and traditions. They also hope to encourage the continuation of traditional songs in the Serbian Orthodox culture and faith as an important part of the participants' lives.

Breze has been extremely active since their start. Their performances include: the St Sava Day celebration in Phoenix, the Global Village festival in Gilbert, the Stevan Hristich Liturgical Concert in Phoenix, and SSF Festival in Lansing, IL. They are looking forward to performing at Diocesan Days in Los Angeles in September, and at the annual Stevan Hristich choir concert in October 2013. They are also looking to traveling to Chicago with the choir in November.

The members of Breze are: Alexis Baich, Marina Lazarevic, Vesna Lazarevic, Natasha Novakovic, Nina Novakovic, Sasha Pasic, Stefany Pasic, Mihaila Tuba and Marija Knezevic. They are directed by Gordana Stojanovic-Mihajlovich, with a help of assistant director, Ivana Njegovan.

Breze also has a group of great people behind the scenes supporting the team of singers: Mila Baich, choir president, as well as other members of the supporting staff, Slavica Ristic, protinica Kristina Tuba and Kristi Lazarevic. The group is also greatly accepted and supported by many members of the St Sava parish in Phoenix, Arizona, led by very reverent father Dragomir Tuba. Breze are looking forward to the future projects and songs! Stay tuned…

BREZE ETHNO CHOIR YOUTUBE CHANNEL


Вокална група Брезе

Брезе су девојке које чине етно хор при цркви „Свети Сава“ у Фениску, Аризона. Ова група је састављена од чланица хора „Стеван Христић“ које су изабрале да прошире свој репертоар ван литургијског окружења. Гордана Стојановић-Михајловић, уметнички директор ове групе, се по први пут састала са девојкама у јануару 2013 са жељом да направе Брезе. Оне од тада активно раде са жељом да постигну успех у својој мисији певања традиционалних српских песама, не само у Аризони, него и у српској заједници широм света.

Брезе се такође труде да упуте младе људе српске дијаспоре у српску културу и обичаје и покушавају да их охрабре да одрже српску традицију и Православље, ван матице Србије. Одржавање Православне вере и српских обичаја је врло важан део живота наших девојака.

Брезе су веома активне од самог почетка. Већ су певале на прослави дана Св. Саве у јануару и на литургијском концерту хора „Стеван Христић“ у мају месецу, у цркви у Фениксу, затим на фестивалу „Глобално Село“ у Гилберту у Аризони, и коначно на фестивалу „Српске Певачке Федерације Америке“, као саставни део хора „Стеван Христић“, у Ленсингу код Чикага.

Оне се већ спремају да путују у Лос Анђелес на „Патријаршијске дане“ крајем августа и такође на концерт хора „Бранко Радичевић“ у Чикагу, средином новембра 2013. Негде у будућности Брезе се надају свом првом солистичком концерту.

Чланице групе, које деле свој певачки таленат, под вођством Гордане Стојановић – Михајловић и асистенцијом Иване Његован, су: Алексис Бајић, Марина и Весна Лазаревић, Наташа и Нина Новаковић, Саша и Стефани Пашић, Михаила Туба и Марија Кнежевић. Чланице тима Брезе које подржавају групу у организацији и логистици су Мила Бајић, Славица Ристић, протиница Кристина Туба и Кристи Лазаревић.

Брезе су веома срећне да имају подршку српске заједнице при цркви „Св. Сава“ у Фениксу, на челу са протом Драгомиром Туба и радују се будућим пројектима и песмама.


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People Directory

Andrei Simic

Education:

  • Ph.D. Social Anthropology, University of California, Berkeley, 1970

Academic Employment:

  • Professor of Anthropology, University of Southern California, 1991

Description of Research:
Summary Statement of Research Interests

  • Professor Simic studies the ethnography of Europe, with a focus on the Balkans and Eastern Europe. His research centers on ethnicity, nationalism, and post-Communist society with particular emphasis on former Yugoslavia. His other specialties include the study of American ethnic groups, cross-cultural gerontology, and visual anthropology.

Research Keywords

  • Balkans and Eastern Europe, Ethnicity, Nationalism, Post-Communist Society, Cross-cultural Gerontology, Visual Anthropology
.
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Publishing

Holy Emperor Constantine and the Edict of Milan

by Bishop Athanasius (Yevtich)

In 2013 Christian world celebrates 1700 years since the day when the Providence of God spoke through the holy Emperor Constantine and freedom was given to the Christian faith. Commemorating the 1700 years since the Edict of Milan of 313, Sebastian Press of the Western American Diocese of the Serbian Orthodox Church published a book by Bishop Athanasius Yevtich, Holy Emperor Constantine and the Edict of Milan. The book has 72 pages and was translated by Popadija Aleksandra Petrovich. This excellent overview of the historical circumstances that lead to the conversion of the first Christian emperor and to the publication of a document that was called "Edict of Milan", was originally published in Serbian by the Brotherhood of St. Simeon the Myrrh-gusher, Vrnjci 2013. “The Edict of Milan” is calling on civil authorities everywhere to respect the right of believers to worship freely and to express their faith publicly.

The publication of this beautiful pocket-size, full-color, English-language book, has been compiled and designed by Bishop Athanasius Yevtich, a disciple of the great twentieth-century theologian Archimandrite Justin Popovich. Bishop Athanasius' thought combines adherence to the teachings of the Church Fathers with a vibrant faith, knowledge of history, and a profound experience of Christ in the Church.

In the conclusion of the book, the author states:"The era of St. Constantine and his mother St. Helena, marks the beginning of what history refers to as Roman, Christian Empire, which was named Byzantium only in recent times in the West. In fact, this was the conception of a Christian Europe. Christian Byzantine culture had a critical effect on Europe; Europe was its heir, and then consciously forgot it. Europe inherited many Byzantine treasures, but unfortunately, also robbed and plundered many others for its own treasuries and museums – not only during the Crusades, but during colonial rule in the Byzantine lands as well. We, the Orthodox Slavs, received a great heritage of the Orthodox Christian East from Byzantium. Primarily, Christ’s Gospel, His faith and His Church, and then, among other things, the Cyrillic alphabet, too."