September 14: Elevation of the Holy Cross
Chrisitan Orthodox and Roman-Catholic beleivers from around the world are celebrating the feast of the Elevation of the Holy Cross (known also as the Exaltation of the Holy Cross) on September 14. According to Orthodox Church teachings, Saint Helen, the mother of Emperor Constantine the Great, discovered the Holy Cross on 14 September 325 AD near the Golgotha. On the spot where the Cross was discovered, there was also found an unknown flower of rare beauty and fragrance, which has been named Vasiliko (today’s basil). It is a day which is held as a strict fast. A special mass at th Metropolitan Cathedral in the Romanian capital Bucharest was broadcast by Radio Romania Cultural and Antena Satelor early on Wednesday.
An „American Shelf” at a library in Covasna county
An „American Shelf” was inaugurated at the Covasna Couty Library on Tuesday. US Ambassador to Bucharest Hans Klemm attended the event with an American donation at the County Library in Covasna capital Sf. Gheorghe. The donation of almost $2,600 includes reference books in American literature, manuals expected to improve Romanians’ knowledge of English, and children’s books. Eight libraries in other Romanian towns host similar „American Shelves”, according to Radio Romania. „The project is aimed at providing Romanians with a better understanding of America and its citizens”, Mr. Klemm told reporters. The American ambassador’s tour also included the central Romanian county of Harghita. It was the second such visit in the region in one year. The American ambassador is expected to meet students in the Romanian southern town of Craiova on Wednesday.
Final deadline for Romanian electorate living abroad
September 14 is the last day when Romanian citizens living abroad could register in order to join their country’s legislative elections scheduled on December 11, Romania’s Foreign Ministry recalled in a statement on Wednesday. In August, Prime Minister Dacian Cioloș, who heads a technocratic government, said the government would permit voters to vote electronically or by mail, and there will be more, smaller voting stations abroad. During the 2014 presidential elections, citizens had to wait for hours to get a chance to vote, both in Romania and abroad, and in many cases were unsuccessful. Thousands of Romanians living in the UK, France, Germany, Austria, Spain, Italy and even in the United States were unable to cast their votes due to poor organisation and logistical problems. Many protested at the Romanian embassies and consulates and demanded a time extension for the voting stations, but their requests were denied. Romanian citizens from abroad can join the electoral register in anticipation of parliamentary elections on 11 December. If they enroll in this registry, Romanians have established domicile or residence abroad may vote by mail ballot or may request the opening of polling stations in the place of residence or domicile. According to data centralized by the Permanent Electoral Authority, so far it has been validated about nine thousand one hundred such applications.
Actress Rodica Sanda Ţuţuianu dies at 81
Romanian actress Rodica Sanda Ţuţuianu has died on Tuesday, according to a statement issued by the Nottara Theatre in the Romanian capital Bucharest on Wednesday. She was 81.
Born on May 11, 1934, Ms.Ţuţuianu was a graduate of the Theatre University in Bucharest. She was an actress at theatres in the Romanian Black Sea Port of Constantza and the Romanian western town of Arad before joining the Nottara Theatre in Bucharest where she appeared in performances for more than 20 years.
Well-known for her parts in such plays as Sidonia Drăguşanu’s „Zizi and Her Life Formula”, Ostrovski’s „The Forest”, Dostoievsky’s „Brothers Karamazov” and „Crime and Punishment”, „William Shakespeare’s „Henry IV”, Achard’s „The Idiot” and Barillet-Gredy’s „The Cactus Flower” , Rodica Sanda Ţuţuianu was also a singular voice as host of Radio Romania’s broadcast of „Women’s Radio Magazine”. Ms. Ţuţuianu made her last appearence in „Traind de Vie” („Life Train”), a film by Radu Mihăileanu.
Last respects could be paid at the Pitar Moş Church in Bucharest. Funerals are scheduled on Friday at a cemetery in Valea Mare, a village near Câmpulung Muscel.
Alexandru Danga
