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

Pearl Drops by Željka Cvjetan Gortinski

Željka Cvjetan Gortinski presents her first recording of Serbian Folk Poems, oral poetry that has been handed down by word of mouth for centuries. She began her acting career on stage with the Belgrade Drama Theater. Fortunate to have worked with some of the greatest directors of the former Yugoslavia, she continues a successful career in theater, film, television and radio in Europe and the United States.

All three poems have been soulfully narrated by Željka in both the English and the Serbian languages and fully enhanced by mystical music and sound design. Included is a bonus track performed by Savo Kontić, a much respected gusle player in Serbia.

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“These recordings are unique and extraordinary partly due to Zeljka’s talent and skill as an oral interpreter and partly because of her strong personal connection to the material. As I worked with Zeljka to help create her oral interpretations I was drawn more and more deeply into the rich tradition of maternal wisdom that pervades the pieces and I became profoundly moved by the timeless universality of the stories. If you listen to these exquisite recordings with an open heart, I am sure they will touch you as much as they have touched me. If they do, please Fromshare your appreciation of these precious pearl drops with others.” Rod Menzies, Voice Recording Producer

From Spoken Word Inc.


SA

 

People Directory

Tomislav Z. Longinović

Professor of Slavic, Comparative Literature and Visual Culture
University of Wisconsin-Madison
1452 Van Hise
1220 Linden Dr
Madison, WI 53706
608-262-4311
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Born and raised in Belgrade, Longinovic holds degrees in creative writing, psychology and has his Ph.D in comparative literature.

His books include Borderline Culture (1993), Vampires Like Us (2005), the co-edited and co-translated volume, with Daniel Weissbort: Red Knight: Serbian Women Songs (1992), and the edited volume: David Albahari, Words are Something Else (1996). He is also the author of several works of fiction, both in Serbian (Sama Amerika, 1995) and English (Moment of Silence, 1990).

His most recent book, Vampire Nation: Violence as Cultural Imaginary, was published by Duke University Press in 2011. His research interests include South Slavic literatures and cultures; the Serbian language; literary theory; Central and East European literary history; comparative Slavic studies, translation studies, and cultural studies.

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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."