The Social Concerns Commission assist Parish Council by developing plans and policies in the areas of Christian service and social responsibility.

The Commission calls the Parish community to respond to social problems and to the needs of all people. Commission members seek ways to encourage the Parish to develop a greater view by embracing God in all Creation and in all humanity and answering Jesus’ call to live justly together in peace.

Through social action, ministry, and prayer, we support one another and seek to meet the needs of the larger community with specific programs, educational opportunities and service projects.  We advocate respect for our natural environment and for the dignity of every person created in the image and likeness of God.

Catholic Social Justice Principles

The Catholic approach to faithful citizenship begins with moral principles, not party platforms.  The directions for our public witness are found in Scripture and Catholic social teaching.  Here are some key themes at the heart of our Catholic social tradition.

Click on a theme below for a more complete description.

- Life and Dignity of the Human Person

Every human person is created in the image and likeness of God. Therefore, each person's life and dignity must be respected, whether that person is an innocent unborn child in a mother's womb, whether that person worked in the World Trade Center or a market in Baghdad, or even whether that person is a convicted criminal on death row.  We believe that every human life is sacred from conception to natural death, that people are more important than things, and that the measure of every institution is whether it protects and respects the life and dignity of the human person.  As the recent Vatican statement points out, "The Church recognizes that while democracy is the best expression of the direct participation of citizens in political choices, it succeeds only to the extent that it is based on a correct understanding of the human person.  Catholic involvement in political life cannot compromise on this principle.

- Call to Family, Community and Participation

The human person is not only sacred, but social.  The God-given institutions of marriage -- a lifelong commitment between a man and a woman -- and family, are central and serve as the foundations for social life.  Marriage and family should be supported and stregthened, not undermined.  Every person has a right to participate in social, economic, and political life and a corresponding duty to work for the advancement of the common good and the well-being of all, especially the poor and weak.

- Right and Responsibilities

Every person has a fundamental right to life -- the right that makes all other rights possible.  Each person also has a right ot the conditions of living a decent life -- faith and family life, food and shelter, education and employment, health care and housing.  We also have a duty to secure and respect these rights not only for ourselves, but for others, and to fulfill our responsibilities to our families, to each other, and to the larger society.

- Option for the Poor and Vulnerable

Scripture teaches that God has a special concern for the poor and vulnerable.  The prophets denounced injustice toward the poor as a lack of fidelity to the God of Israel.  Jesus, who identified himself with "the least of these", came to preach "good news to the poor, liberty to captives...and to set the downtrodden free."  The Church calls on all of us to embrace this preferential option for the poor and vulnerable, to embody it in our lives, and to work to have it shape public policies and priorities.  A fundamental measure of our society is how we care for and stand with the poor and vulnerable.

- Dignity of Work and the Rights of Workers

The economy must serve people, not the other way around.  Work is more than a way to make a living; it is a form of continuing participation in God's act of creation.  If the dignity of work is to be protected, then the basic rights of workers, owners, and others must be respected -- the right to productive work, to decent and fair wages, to organize and choose to join a union, to economic initiative, and to ownership and private property.  These rights must be exercised in ways that advance the common good.

- Solidarity

We are one human family.  We are our brothers' and sisters' keepers, wherever they may be.  Pope John Paul II insists, "We are all really responsible for all".  Loving our neighbor has global dimensions in a shrinking world.  At the core of the virtue of solidarity is the pursuit of justice and peace.  Pope Paul VI taught that "if you want peace, work for justice."  The Gospel calls us to be "peacemakers".  Our love for all our sisters and brothers demands that we be "sentinels of peace" in a world wounded by violence and conflict.

- Caring for God's Creation

The world that God created has been entrusted to us.  Our use of it must be directed by God's plan for creation, not simply for our own benefit.  Our stewardship of the Earth is a form of participation in God's act of creating and sustaining the world.  In our use of creation, we must be guided by a concern for generations to come.  We show our respect for the Creator by our care for creation.

These themes anchor our community's role in public life.  They help us to resist excessive self-interest, blind partisanship, and ideological agendas.  They also help us avoid extreme distortions of pluralism and tolerance that deny any fundamental values and dismiss the contributions and convictions of believers.  As the Vatican's statement on public life explains, we cannot accept an understanding of pluralism and tolerance that suggests "every possible outlook on life [is] of equal value".  However, this insistence that there are fundamental moral values "has nothing to do with the legitimate freedom of Catholic citizens to choose among the various political opinions that are compatible with faith and the natural moral law, and to select, according to their own criteria, what best corresponds to the needs of the common good".

Following is a list of resources that may be helpful for those seeking assistance in meeting their personal needs or in providing relief  to others in the local or global communities. 

 General Information

 Event Information

January   TBD Respect Life Petition - All Masses   28 Meeting - 7:00 PM February   3 West Side Catholic Center Speaker - 7:00 PM   25 Meeting - 7:00 PM March   25 Meeting - 7:00 PM   TBD Honduras Coin Collection April     22 Meeting - 7:00 PM May   TBD Respect Life Holy Hour and the May Crowning of the Blessed Mother   9 Mother's Day Collection   8 Walk for Hunger   17 Annual Older Adult Liturgy at St. Basil   27 Meeting - 7:00 PM June   24 Meeting - 7:00 PM

 Focus Areas

FOCUS AREA: Fair Trade

Fair Trade Resource Network:  http://www.fairtraderesource.org
InterReligious Task Force:        www.irtfcleveland.org  
Heartbeats:                              http://www.humilityofmary.org/shoppe-heartbeats.html
Revive Fair Trade Shop:           http://www.revivestore.com    
Oxfam International:                http://www.oxfam.org/en/campaigns/trade


FOCUS AREA: Global Focus

United Nations:                             www.un.org
Genocide in Darfur:                      www.savedarfur.org  or  www.millionvoicesfordarfur.org
Ugandan Children Human Rights: www.invisiblechildren.com  
Immigrant Issues:                        www.justiceforimmigrants.org  
Bread For the World:                    www.bread.org    

Alternatives to Abortion

Womankind (maternal and prenatal care center):
216.662.5700 (Garfield Heights, OH)  www.womankindcleveland.com

Cleveland Pregnancy Center:  www.clevelandpregnancyhelp.org
440.243.2520 Berea, OH
216.631.6468 Cleveland, OH   

Alternaterm Prenatal Clinic:  216.371.4848 (Cleveland Heights, OH)

FOCUS AREA: Local Hunger Relief

Cleveland Food Bank:                                       www.clevelandfoodbank.org
The West Side Catholic Center:                       www.wsccenter.org
The Hunger Network of Greater Cleveland:     www.hungernetwork.org

Volunteer Opportunities / Contacts

Global Solidarity

The members of this group work to inform parishioners about concerns facing the international community, to advocate for humane and just treatment for all of the world’s people and to seek change through peaceful means.

For additional information, please contact: Rose Jancsy  

Local Hunger Relief

The members of this group support hunger-fighting agencies in the Greater Cleveland area such as The Cleveland Foodbank, the West Side Catholic Center, and The Hunger Network of Greater Cleveland.

For additional information, please contact: Autumn Onders

Health Care

The mission of this group is to promote health care as a right to which all persons are entitled as a matter of Christian social justice. The group provides information to the parish community about significant health care
issues and advocates for more equitable access and distribution of health care services.

For additional information, please contact: Ted Zawadski  

Respect Life

Members of this group keep the issue of the sanctity of life, from natural conception to natural death, in the hearts and minds of parishioners, proclaiming the value of all human dignity. Members work through prayer, pro-life projects, Programs, and publicity and by providing information on current life issues at all government levels.

For additional information, please contact: Gene Gilbert

Rosary For Life
First Saturday of each month - a prayerful and peaceful vigil held at a local abortion Clinic. 

For additional information, please contact Gene Gilbert  

Cleveland Food Bank
Second Wednesday of each month -- volunteers sort and repack food from 6 - 8 pm. Carpool leaves St Basil's at 5:30pm.

For additional information, please contact Autumn Onders

Walk For Hunger
Sat May 8 -- volunteers will complete a 5K walk through downtown Cleveland to raise money for The Hunger Network of Greater Cleveland. For additional information, please visit our team page.

For additional information, please contact Autumn Onders

Job Support
Assist and support our parishioners and others in the greater Cleveland community to obtain gainful and/or more suitable employment. The main purpose of this ministry is to provide outplacement training, as well as, in concert with other local employment ministries, foster networking and help identify employment opportunities.

For additional information, please contact Gene Gilbert or Bob Kestranek