Our Background
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How We Began
At Leadership Day in January 2009, the Parish Pastoral Council adopted an objective to promote and spread Catholic Social Teaching with a corollary to advocate for social justice issues. Interested parishioners came forward and formed the Social Justice Ministry at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton.
Charity goes beyond justice, because to love is to give, to offer what is “mine” to the other; but it never lacks justice, which prompts us to give the other what is “his,” what is due to him by reason of his being or his acting.
Pope Benedict XVI, Caritas in Veritate 6
Parish social ministry must include both efforts to provide direct service or outreach (charity) to people in need and efforts to work for justice and peace by shaping, the policies, programs, and structures of society.
There can be no love without justice. If we really love someone, we want them to have what is rightfully theirs and to be all that God intended them to be. If we really love, we will work to change structures, systems, laws and policies which are harmful to people. -
Access to Education
During the 2009 legislative session members of the Social Justice Ministry were part of the institutionally based community organizing efforts of Dallas Area Interfaith, along with sister organizations, in lobbying for the creation of the $25 million JET fund. This allowed for the expansion of successful workforce training initiatives such as Project QUEST into satellite programs like QUEST: Dallas/Collin (now Skill QUEST). Skill QUEST was created with a $400,000 grant awarded from the JET fund.
Skill QUEST is a premier life and career advancement program that offers aid and resources to working North Texans pursuing associate’s degrees or certifications in health care, construction, technology and logistics. Training is conducted through the community college system for targeted jobs that pay at least $16.00/hour, have benefits and lead to a career path. These programs return $12.00 for every $1.00 invested. Skill QUEST graduated its first ten participants in May of 2012.
Involvement with and promotion of this program by the Social Justice Ministry enabled this organization to receive a grant of $10,000 from the Monsignor Henry V. Petter Endowment Fund. Members continue to meet with local political officials and business leaders to assist in securing program funding and in building relationships with potential employers. For more information please visit the Skill QUEST website at skillquestntx.org. -
Healthcare
In 2012, the Social Justice Ministry worked to improve healthcare in Collin County. Through the bulletin, parishioners were made aware of the need for volunteer physicians for Project Access-Collin County (PACC) which is a healthcare referral system for the uninsured and indigent. The Social Justice Ministry worked with and promoted Project Access making parishioners aware of the need for volunteer doctors in Collin County. There was a need of 40-50 general practitioners and specialists to volunteer to provide medical homes to their patients.
Several ministry members took calls from interested physicians, nurses, healthcare workers, etc. They were screened and then referred to the County PACC office in Frisco, www.pacollin.org (214-872-1011). Ministry members also notified other Catholic churches in Collin County, which in turn placed information in their bulletins, regarding this need.
In early 2013, the Social Justice Ministry worked with Dallas Catholic Charities and the Texas Catholic Conference (TCC) which advocates on behalf of the Roman Catholic Bishops of Texas for policies and programs that support the life and dignity of every human person from conception through natural death.
The Texas Bishops supported State Legislation for Texas to Opt In for Medicaid Eligibility Expansion, which:- Expands Medicaid up to 133% of the federal poverty line;
- Improves and modernizes the Medicaid and CHIP eligibility system; and
- Improves Texas’ critical public health safety net and infrastructure.
On February 17 th, booths were available after all Masses in order to sign a petition which stated, “ As concerned Texas citizens, we call on our State leaders to opt Texas IN to the Medicaid Expansion Provisions of the Affordable Care Act”. Members also were present with the petition at the Girls and Boys Club Healthcare Family Day and the Justice Conference. Over 300 signatures were obtained and eventually presented to the State Legislators in Austin.
Social Justice Ministry members also attended Catholic Faith in Action Advocacy Day in Austin on April 9 th. Meetings were held with our State Legislators and Senators to advocate for issues that the TCC supported, i.e., Stopping PayDay Lenders’ Exploitation of Working Texas Families, Advance Directives Reform, Protecting Women’s Health and Lives of Unborn Children, Creation of the School Choice Corporate Tax Credit Scholarships, and Supporting Medicaid Expansion.
We are currently working on an awareness program to help parishioners understand the Affordable Care Act Exchange. -
Homelessness
The Face of Homeless in Collin County
Families with Children, Single Adults, and TeenagersWe don't always see the homeless, but they are here.
There are more of them than you might think.The faces of the homeless in Collin County are families and children. There are no public emergency shelters in Plano or in all of Collin County.
The Social Justice Ministry is dedicated to the following:
(A) educating the parish and the community in the issues surrounding the homeless population in our County-shelter, food, jobs, health care.
(B) finding solutions for the urgent or unmet shelter and service needs of the homeless.
Members of the ministry participate in the monthly meeting of the Collin County Homeless Coalition, the annual Homeless Awareness Week and the annual Point in Time count of the homeless. Currently, collaboration with other faith communities is being developed with focus placed on women with children and unaccompanied youth living in poverty and crisis.
The need is great. The Samaritan Inn in McKinney, a transitional shelter, turned away 3700 qualified individuals seeking shelter last year due to inadequate capacity. Let us remember the words of our Pope Francis in proclaiming that the measure of the greatness of society is found in the way it treats those most in need, those who have nothing apart from their poverty. And Psalm 140-13 exhorts us to know "...the Lord will take up the cause of the needy, justice for the poor".