The feast of St. Simeon Mirotočivi is always celebrated as a special occasion at the Serbian Orthodox Church of the same name in South Chicago.
After the cutting of the Slava cake, the guests are served a banquet lunch. A performance of the local folklore ensemble is being organized, where even the youngest members proudly wear costumes and show that they love to dance kolo.
Guests at the special table also give special speeches.
The President of the Church School Board, Jovo Balać, was born in America, but most of his life has been connected to this parish.
He says: “We are very happy that for six decades, sixty consecutive years, we have been celebrating our glory, Saint Simeon Mirotocivi.” He adds, “We are very happy that we are the foundation of Serbian tradition here in South Chicago. Many years ago this church was founded by steel workers, immigrants who barely spoke English, but knew how to build a church with their own hands and modest donations.
And today we see their children and grandchildren here at this celebration.”
Secretary of the Church School Board Ranko Jovićević adds: “They were some wonderful people who came to this country with much smaller means, with much smaller opportunities. They built this holy temple. Here, for sixty years, we have been gathering here in this Serbian home, and that helps us direct children, maintain folklore and all other customs and act as one community that has held on in these areas for quite a long time and quite strongly.”
We ask, “Was it difficult, for sixty years, to preserve Serbian customs here in southern Chicago, near northern Indiana, thousands of kilometers away from Serbia, from other places?”
Ranko Jovićević answers: “Of course, you also help us, and the media that transmit it and connect us with the motherland. It always means a lot to us in the diaspora when someone comes from the homeland. Writers and painters and theaters also come. We try to maintain that cultural life and the biggest struggle is with the children and with the language, to pass the language on to the next generation, as well as to keep the faith. Then it’s all much easier.”
Many members of this community are planning to visit Serbia this summer and say they are looking forward to it. They are buying apartments and hoping to return to their hometown as soon as possible.
IN SERBIAN:
Slava Svetog Simeona Mirotočivog uvek se obeležava kao poseban dogadjaj u istoimenoj Srpskoj pravoslavnoj crkvi u Južnom Čikagu.
Nakon sečenja slavskog kolača, gostima se služi svečani ručak. Organizuje se nastup lokalnog folklornog ansambla, gde se i najmlađi sa ponosom oblače i pokazuju da vole da igraju kolo. Gosti za posebnim stolom takođe drže posebne govore.
Predsednik Crkvenoškolskog odbora Jovo Balać rođen je u Americi, ali je najveći deo svog života vezan za ovu parohiju. On kaže: „Veoma smo srećni što već šest decenija, šezdeset godina zaredom, slavimo našu slavu, Svetog Simeona Mirotočivog. On dodaje: „Veoma smo srećni što smo temelj srpske tradicije ovde u Južnom Čikagu. Pre mnogo godina ovu crkvu su osnovali radnici u čeličanama, imigranti koji su jedva govorili engleski, ali su znali kako da sagrade crkvu svojim rukama i skromne donacije. I danas na ovoj proslavi vidimo njihovu decu i unuke“.
Sekretar Crkvenoškolskog odbora Ranko Jovićević dodaje: “To su bili divni ljudi koji su sa mnogo manjim sredstvima, sa mnogo manjim mogućnostima došli u ovu zemlju. Oni su podigli ovaj sveti hram. Evo, šezdeset godina se okupljamo ovde u ovom srpskom domu, a to nam pomaže da usmeravamo decu, održavamo folklor i sve druge običaje i delujemo kao jedna zajednica koja se na ovim prostorima održala dosta dugo i prilično snažno“.
Pitamo „Da li je bilo teško, šezdeset godina, sačuvati srpske običaje ovde u južnom Čikagu, blizu severne Indijane, hiljadama kilometara daleko od Srbije, i drugih mesta?“
Ranko Jovićević odgovara: „Naravno da nam pomažete i vi, i mediji koji to prenose i povezuju sa maticom. Nama u dijaspori uvek mnogo znači kada neko dođe iz otadžbine. Dođu i pisci i slikari i pozorišta. Trudimo se da održimo taj kulturni život i najveća borba je sa decom i sa jezikom, da jezik prenesemo na sledeće generacije, kao i da sačuvamo veru. Tada je sve mnogo lakše.”
Mnogi članovi ove zajednice planiraju da posete Srbiju ovog leta i kažu da joj se raduju. Kupuju stanove i nadaju se da će se što pre vratiti u rodni grad.
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