A Network of Friends: The Letters of Jean Vanier to the Friends and Communities of L'Arche, Vol. 1: 1964-1973

Les Harding is author of The Voyages of Lesser Men: Thumbnail Sketches
in Canadian Exploration.

L’Arche is a Roman Catholic society devoted to helping the mentally
and physically handicapped and to integrate them into society as much as
possible. In small, family-like homes, the handicapped are encouraged to
grow in both human and spiritual terms.

The first L’Arche home for handicapped men was founded on August 4,
1964, in Trosly, near Paris, by Jean Vanier, whose father, George
Vanier, was a former governor general of Canada. In the beginning, Jean
Vanier writes in the introduction to this volume, “things seemed to
fall into place so quickly and easily: people felt a call, homes were
given, assistants came, boards of directors were formed. I had the
conviction that God was truly present in all this foolishness, and had a
plan. It was up to us to simply read the signs and to follow them.”

In this series of warm and heartfelt letters, the development of
L’Arche is traced from a single home to a worldwide movement with
homes for men and women in Europe, the United States, Canada, India, and
elsewhere. Vanier is the first to admit that he and his assistants have
learned and grown more from their association with the handicapped than
vice versa. His correspondence provides many moving moments. Further
volumes of letters are planned.

My only real criticism of this book is that the proofreading should
have been more thorough.