The Legacy of Our Founders -

and Their Founder -

Lives on at Manor CollegeAN ESSAY BY

STEVE GREENBAUM

28 MANOR COLLEGE 2015 ANNUAL REVIEW

St. Basil the Great who founded The Sisters of Saint Basil the Great in

the 4th century.

Saint Basil was an advocate of social justice issues and a believer in the importance of education. If he could see the manifestation of that legacy today, he would be pleased.

According to a paper written by Sister Dorothy Ann Busowski, OSBM, provincial of the Sisters of Saint Basil the Great, and Catherine Nu-erney, SSJ, Ph.D., titled, Saint Basil the Great: The Ptochoptopheion or “New City,” Basil was “deeply affected by the disparity between the rich and poor,” and, “desired to build a new order, a new society that was reflective of the early Christian community.” This lead to the creation of the Basiliead, or “New City.”

Known as “Newtown,” its very presence was a constant reminder to the rich of their privileged lives and a call to them to spend their wealth in a truly Christian way by giving to the poor. The city included a church, a hospital, a guesthouse for travelers, and hospices for the poor and sick, as well as doctors and nurses.

St. Basil was a true champion of social justice, defined by Matthew Robinson, Ph.D., from the Department of Government and Justice Studies at Appalachian State University, as, “promoting a just society by challenging injustice and valuing diversity,” which happens when, “all people share a common humanity and have a right to equal treatment and support of their human rights, along with a fair allocation of com-munity resources.”

Basil didn’t just talk the talk. He walked the walk. Born into a family of nobility and wealth, Basil discovered in the Gospel that the great means of reaching perfection was “selling one’s goods” and “the sharing of them with the poor.” (Busowski & Nuerney) He renounced his share of the family property, found a monastery and began to write and preach, distributing his inheritance to the poor. He was so deeply con-cerned with the sick, poor and homeless that he renounced all earthly possessions and lived simply so others might survive. Monks from his monastery went into the world to help others as social workers, the first example of a monastic combining asceticism with a public life.

But he did not encourage those who were well off to get rid of their material goods, but rather redirect them, urging his followers to “be generous and use whatever is leftover from real needs to do good.”

(Busowski & Nuerney) He believed people who were able should work, not just to meet their own basic needs but to earn more so they could give some away to help others.

When Basil organized a soup kitchen, he also personally served the hungry. Again…walking the walk.

St. Basil was also a huge proponent of education and in the 4th century, he and his sister, St. Macrina, formed the Sisters of Saint Basil the Great. Founders of Eastern Monasticism, the Sisters urged their follow-ers to be “co-workers with God” in the task of developing the potential of each human being through the means of education as a partnership with God in the creative act of the development of the whole person.

Sitting squarely at the intersection of all of these beliefs is Manor College, founded by the Sisters in 1947. The College’s mission reflects the hallmarks of the philosophies of the college’s founders -- and their founder – which live on and are evidenced by the College’s curriculum and the many activities and events the students, faculty, staff and stu-dents participate in throughout each year.

Serving as a perfect example, commemoration and perpetuation, of St. Basil’s ideals and of Manor’s mission – was the Fall Social Justice Symposium, held at the Spirituality Center of the Sisters of Saint Basil the Great on October 29, 2014.

Sponsored by The Legal Studies Programs at Manor College, the Legal Studies Student Association, Manor College’s Campus Ministry and the Basilian Legacy Committee, the Social Justice Symposium provided an educational platform for attendees to learn from, “exceptional people who are engaged in social change in their professions and how they are acting to implement social justice,” as stated by Mary Sims, education coordinator for the Legal Studies programs at Manor, in her introduc-tion.

Service in the Community and Beyond was the topic addressed by Tom Sims, chief development officer for the South Jersey Food Bank and the issues of Peer Mediation, Bullying Prevention and Drug and Alcohol Awareness in the Schools was addressed by Curry Bailey, student disci-plinary hearing officer for the Philadelphia School District. Marti Little,

Much of the information used in this essay regarding the background of Saint Basil the Great is quoted or paraphrased from a paper written by Sister Dorothy Ann Busowski, OSBM, provincial of the Sisters of Saint Basil the Great, and Catherine Nuerney, SSJ, Ph.D., titled, Saint Basil the Great: The Ptochoptopheion or “New City.”

Curry Bailey, student disciplinary hearing officer for the School District of Philadelphia, spoke to Symposium attendees about peer mediation, bullying prevention and drug and alcohol awareness in the schools.

Also presenting was Marti Little, Esq., staff attorney at the Support Center for Child Advocates in Philadelphia, where she assists clients in framing their own educational and permanency outcomes.

Tom Sims (left), chief development officer for the Food Bank of South Jersey spoke about his work raising funds for soup kitchens, social service programming, medical societies, historic restorations, a film festival and homeless kittens and puppies. Mary Sims (right), education coordinator for the Legal Studies programs, organized and MC’d the event.

Diane Pevar, JD, chair of the Business, Technology and Legal Studies division and director of Manor’s Legal Studies programs, addressed issues regarding access to justice during her Symposium presentation.

FEATURE STORY

30 MANOR COLLEGE 2015 ANNUAL REVIEW

staff attorney at the Support Center for Child Advocates, spoke about Providing Justice for Children.

The symposium also featured Diane Pevar, J.D., chair of the Business, Technology and Legal Studies Division at Manor and director of the College’s Legal Studies programs, who spoke about Legal Access to Justice, a presentation that served as an example of the confluence of Manor’s role as educator and its mission to also serve as steward of the ideals set forth by St. Basil and the Sisters of St. Basil the Great to, in effect, be champions of social justice and instruments of change.

Pevar’s presentation focused on the fact that the need for legal services among people who are disadvantaged in our country far exceeds the number of attorneys available to represent them, citing that 80 percent of low-income individuals are unable to obtain legal assistance and 50 percent of legal aid applicants are turned away. According to Pevar, this is significant in that having legal representation can often mean the difference between keeping or losing a home, obtaining protection from domestic violence, having enough food or keeping a family together.

By graduating paralegals that are informed of these issues, Manor contributes to closing that “justice gap” because, according to Pevar, “If state lawmakers would expand the role of the paralegal, more legal services could be performed by non-lawyers, thereby increasing access to justice.”

This year’s Founders Day activities were also an example of the conver-gence of Manor’s role as educator and, as the mission states, in helping students “develop a global vision of humanity and the world” while

emphasizing the “social responsibility of the educated person.”Founders Day, held January 30 this year, served as a launch to a month of educational programming dedicated to raising awareness on the issue of human trafficking. In addition, the Manor Community collected 25 shopping bags filled with food, household items, and bedding items to donate to Dawn’s Place, a safe and secure residential program for international and American women who are making the journey from commercial sexual exploitation to a life of freedom, choice and independence.

In concluding her introduction to the Symposium, Sims said, “I hope that this symposium will inspire you to continue the tradition, and let St. Basil be a reminder of the good work that can be done to provide all of society with the basic necessities of life in a way that also respects the person who is made in the image of God.

“We can build a ‘city of Mercy’ – our own Basilieads – among our fam-ilies, neighborhoods, churches, states, and countries around the world,” she concluded.

Manor’s mission states that, “one of the marks of an educational insti-tution is service to the community,” further stating that, “Given the college’s resources and capabilities, Manor’s community services reflect its philosophy, educational program, ethnic heritage and tradition.”

That philosophy, program, heritage and tradition are part of a legacy that started so long ago with St. Basil – and continued through the Sisters of Saint Basil the Great – and today is alive and well at Manor College.

For this year’s Founders Day outreach project, the Manor Community collected 25 shopping bags filled with food, household items, and bedding items to donate to Dawn’s Place, a safe and secure residential program for international and American women who are making the journey from commercial sexual exploitation to a life of freedom, choice and independence. Pictured above with the 25 donated bags are Sister Terry Shields from Dawn’s Place (second from left) and members of the Founders Day planning committee (left to right): Diane Pevar, Nick Rudnytzky, Chrystyna Prokopovych, Michael Sims, Ali Mootz and Kelly Peiffer.