A layman and a fervent catholic, Jean Vanier has consecrated his entire life to helping the mentally handicapped. After starting the L’Arche Foundation in 1964, he also founded the Foi et Lumiere Community in 1971.
During this Lenten season -- a time of reconciliation and conversion -- inside the chapel of L’Arche in Trosly, France, Jean Vanier establishes a connection between the Gospel of the Transfiguration and the transformation of handicapped people.
 
“Peter and his companions were overcome by sleep. But, after having awoken, they saw the glory of Jesus and the two men beside Him. The text of the transfiguration is very moving for us here at L’Arche since we receive many people who are wounded and suffering, whose bodies, after a while, become bodies that communicate, that are luminous.
I would especially like to speak about a little boy who was very important to me, a little boy who was blind and deaf, with a very serious intellectual handicap. He could not walk and I don’t think I’ve ever seen a young boy with so much anxiety. In the end, what does a boy like Eric need? He needs someone to say to him “I love you as you are.” From time to time he would come to this particular Chapel -- he could very often be found there -- and his body would become peaceful. Sometimes he would have a small smile on his face. We were moved by the transformation of his body, a very anxious, restless body, and sometimes a very peaceful body. Here we discover that God reveals Himself to this boy.
Our joy at L’Arche is the joy that comes from that kind of transformation which makes our defense systems fall. I encounter the other not as a person with a handicap, but as a person, I discover that we are all alike! And then we can laugh and celebrate life. The great concern today is our need to find places where we are able to celebrate our humanity. And this is achieved in smaller communities, kind of like ours, where we can celebrate our humanity.”
 
The L’Arche Foundation accommodates 2,700 people who are mentally handicapped in 124 different communities which are established in 30 countries throughout the entire world.

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