Download or read book The Heart of L Arche written by Jean Vanier and published by Novalis Press (CN). This book was released on 2012-01-01 with total page 95 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: With simplicity and conviction, this book shows how a life shared with handicapped people calls us to selflessness and risk. The vulnerability that is so much part of their lives reveals our own limits and forces us to ask questions that can lead us to profound liberation.
Download or read book Reconsidering Intellectual Disability written by Jason Reimer Greig and published by Georgetown University Press. This book was released on 2015-11-02 with total page 304 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Drawing on the controversial case of “Ashley X,” a girl with severe developmental disabilities who received interventionist medical treatment to limit her growth and keep her body forever small—a procedure now known as the “Ashley Treatment”—Reconsidering Intellectual Disability explores important questions at the intersection of disability theory, Christian moral theology, and bioethics. What are the biomedical boundaries of acceptable treatment for those not able to give informed consent? Who gets to decide when a patient cannot communicate their desires and needs? Should we accept the dominance of a form of medicine that identifies those with intellectual impairments as pathological objects in need of the normalizing bodily manipulations of technological medicine? In a critical exploration of contemporary disability theory, Jason Reimer Greig contends that L'Arche, a federation of faith communities made up of people with and without intellectual disabilities, provides an alternative response to the predominant bioethical worldview that sees disability as a problem to be solved. Reconsidering Intellectual Disability shows how a focus on Christian theological tradition’s moral thinking and practice of friendship with God offers a way to free not only people with intellectual disabilities but all people from the objectifying gaze of modern medicine. L'Arche draws inspiration from Jesus's solidarity with the "least of these" and a commitment to Christian friendship that sees people with profound cognitive disabilities not as anomalous objects of pity but as fellow friends of God. This vital act of social recognition opens the way to understanding the disabled not as objects to be fixed but as teachers whose lives can transform others and open a new way of being human.
Download or read book My Home in L Arche written by Geoff Rigby and published by Hunter Friends of L'Arche Inc. This book was released on 2014-12-01 with total page 231 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Fifty years ago, L’Arche was born in a small French town called Trosly when Jean Vanier invited two men with intellectual disabilities living in a Mental Institution to come and live with him. One hundred and forty three L’Arche Communities now exist in over forty countries. Sharing stories has become an essential feature of life within L’Arche Communities and forms the basis for developing lasting mutual relationships, not only between core members, assistants and other members of a Community home, but also within the broader L’Arche Community. Within our L’Arche Communities in Australia we have developed a Remembering, Celebrating and Dreaming process that encourages core members and companions from within the Community to spend time together getting to know each other, dreaming about plans for the future and celebrating lives together. Often a core member may not have been afforded an opportunity to share some aspects of their lives or to talk about issues that worry them or what they would like to do to make their lives comfortable. Spending time, listening and sharing stories helps to facilitate this process and provides an opportunity to share some of these memories and dreams with the broader Community, families and friends. One of the key parts of the L’Arche Mission is to make known the gifts of people with intellectual disabilities and all too often we find that it is not only with those directly involved with core members that these gifts become apparent and have a profound influence, but with all who come in contact with them. Most of the time, the stories that arise from these relationships are not shared outside the L’Arche Communities. The importance of sharing stories emanates from our history. Universally as L’Arche welcomed more people into Community we discovered that there was little or no attention paid to the lives and events of core members. Many people had lived significant experiences and they needed these listened to and acknowledged as part of who they are and their personal history. The primary objective of this book is to share some of these stories from people with and without intellectual disabilities who have been involved in some way within L’Arche Communities. Living together and sharing as a Community as well as being part of the broader L’Arche Australia and International Federation Family involves participation in many activities that involve day to day commitments and organisational demands. All of these are part of the L’Arche Australia story and we have tried to include snippets of information that highlight some of the background of L’Arche together with features from day to day Community life and operation of the various Communities. We hope you enjoy these stories and gain a little understanding of the heart of L’Arche.
Download or read book Speaking of Faith written by Krista Tippett and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2008-01-29 with total page 276 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A thought-provoking, original appraisal of the meaning of religion by the host of public radio's On Being Krista Tippett, widely becoming known as the Bill Moyers of radio, is one of the country's most intelligent and insightful commentators on religion, ethics, and the human spirit. With this book, she draws on her own life story and her intimate conversations with both ordinary and famous figures, including Elie Wiesel, Karen Armstrong, and Thich Nhat Hanh, to explore complex subjects like science, love, virtue, and violence within the context of spirituality and everyday life. Her way of speaking about the mysteries of life-and of listening with care to those who endeavor to understand those mysteries--is nothing short of revolutionary.
Download or read book Adam written by Nouwen, Henri J. M. and published by Orbis Books. This book was released on 2022-11-03 with total page 109 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "The classic story of how Adam, a severely handicapped young man, led Nouwen to a new understanding of his faith, with a new Afterword by Robert Ellsberg"--
Download or read book Community written by Nouwen, Henri J. M. and published by Orbis Books. This book was released on 2021-08-25 with total page 148 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Essays and talks on the theme of community by Henri Nouwen, the popular writer and spiritual teacher"--
Download or read book Becoming Human written by Jean Vanier and published by Paulist Press. This book was released on 2008 with total page 142 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this deeply compassionate work, Jean Vanier shares his profoundly human vision for creating a common good that radically changes our communities, our relationships and ourselves. He proposes that by opening ourselves to others, those we perceive as weak, different, or inferior, we can achieve true personal and societal freedom. The 10th anniversary edition includes a new Introduction by the author.
Download or read book Community and Growth written by Jean Vanier and published by Paulist Press. This book was released on 1989 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: If you've ever thought about community, whether as a lifestyle or simply as an expression of deeper fellowship with others, this book is essential reading. In the fifteen years since it first appeared in English, it has become the classic text on the subject -- read, dog-eared, borrowed, and discussed.Vanier is not a rosy idealist. That is because his writing is based not on theories, but on a wealth of wisdom gleaned over many years living in community, experiencing difficult days and joyous celebrations, times of struggle and hard-won success, moments of doubt and inspiration. He acknowledges the inevitable little frustrations of a life lived with and for others, but he also helps the reader see that without struggle there is no true growth.
Download or read book From Brokenness to Community written by JEAN VANIER and published by Paulist Press. This book was released on 2013-08-14 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Inner Voice of Love written by Henri J. M. Nouwen and published by Image. This book was released on 2010-10-20 with total page 142 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A classic, personal work of self-examination from the bestselling author of The Return of the Prodigal Son, hailed as “one of the world’s greatest spiritual writers” by Christianity Today This is Henri Nouwen’s secret journal. It was written during the most difficult period of his life, when he suddenly lost his self-esteem, his energy to live and work, his sense of being loved—even his hope in God. Although he experienced excruciating anguish and despair, he was still able to keep a journal in which he wrote a daily spiritual imperative to himself that emerged from his conversations with friends and supporters. For more than eight years, Nouwen felt that his journal was too raw and private to share with others. Instead, he published The Return of the Prodigal Son to express some of the insights gained during his mental and spiritual crisis. But then friends asked him, “Why keep your anguish hidden from the many people who have been nurtured by your writing? Wouldn’t it be a consolation to know about the fierce inner battle that lies underneath your spiritual insights?” For the countless men and women who live through the pain of broken relationships or suffer from the loss of a loved one, this book about the inner voice of love offers new courage, new hope, and even new life.
Download or read book Sharing Life written by Whitney-Brown, Carolyn and published by Paulist Press. This book was released on 2019 with total page 264 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What does it take to begin a spiritual community? Founders of early L?Arche communities tell stories of risk, joy, pain and growth from life shared with people with intellectual disabilities in France, Canada, India, USA, UK, Ivory Coast, Haiti, and Honduras.
Download or read book The Road to Peace written by Henri J. M. Nouwen and published by Orbis Books. This book was released on 2002-01-01 with total page 296 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Throughout his life Henri Nouwen stressed the connection between intimacy with Christ and solidarity with a wounded world. From his early support for the civil rights movement, through his engagement in the cause of peace, to his life with the handicapped members of the L'Arche community, Nouwen was always immersed with the social as well as the spiritual dimensions of the gospel. In gathering together Nouwen's many writings on peace and social justice, editor John Dear amplifies this crucial element of Nouwen's message about the call of Christian discipleship. At the same time, Nouwen calls on activists to be peacemakers in the fullest sense: to root their witness in prayer, joy, and a spirit of love. For all those who have read and treasured the life and work of Henri Nouwen, The Road to Peace is an inspiration, and a challenge to live our Christian lives with both love and action. Book jacket.
Download or read book Tender to the World written by Carolyn Whitney-Brown and published by McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP. This book was released on 2019-10-16 with total page 261 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Jean Vanier’s spiritual vision and sense of humour shaped L’Arche, but the organization was also informed by its surprising history with the United Church of Canada. In Tender to the World Carolyn Whitney-Brown explores the connections between the two organizations through diverse critical insights from Julia Kristeva, Doreen Massey, and Mikhail Bakhtin, as well as Vanier's controversial articulation of the gift of weakness. Tracing the five-decade relationship between L'Arche and the United Church alongside evolving disability theories, Whitney-Brown examines both the fundamental importance of stories and the agency of people with intellectual disabilities. Inversion - a transformative overturning of expectations in social interactions - can be upsetting or exciting, challenging or inspiring, she argues. This book offers a fresh look at how L'Arche and the United Church have worked to break down walls of difference, illuminating how each tenders something unexpected to the other and to the world. At a time when many are seeking new visions for society, the long and complex relationship between Canada's largest Protestant denomination and L'Arche offers both encouragement and a deeper way to approach questions of living in diverse communities.
Download or read book The Practice of Belonging written by Lisa Kentgen, PhD and published by North Atlantic Books. This book was released on 2023-04-04 with total page 208 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An inspirational guide to the 6 core qualities of healthy communities, for anyone looking to build community as a source of connection and a vehicle for social change After two years meeting with different communities in the US, psychologist Lisa Kentgen identified 6 key traits of vibrant, healthy communities that we can all apply to our own lives and networks: Commitment to care Acceptance Diversity Skillful conflict resolution Bonding rituals Hospitality Each chapter focuses on one of these traits, highlighting a particular community as a case study of how it can be put into practice. You’ll learn about a wide range of successful community models, including a tiny-home village for people who had been chronically houseless in Austin, Texas; a study circle to build connection between Native and non-Native people in a small town in South Dakota; a 500-member community choir in Columbus, Ohio; and a Buddhist center in Barre, Massachusetts committed to bringing greater diversity to the Dharma. Throughout the book, you’ll reflect: How can we cultivate these traits of vibrant community in our own lives? What would it look like to prioritize caring and acceptance in our interactions with others? How can we create a climate of true inclusivity, one where our differences both challenge and strengthen us? How can we learn to feel more comfortable with tension and acquire the skills to move through conflict toward creative solutions? What would happen if we incorporated meaningful rituals into our communities and made a point of celebrating each other? With intention and practice, we can transform our social relationships and build communities that appreciate difference, encourage authentic expression, and foster an environment of belonging and mutual care. This book will inspire you to make the transformative leap from “me” to “we,” creating communal, loving spaces in which to connect--and thrive--together.
Download or read book The Drama of Living written by David F. Ford and published by Canterbury Press. This book was released on 2014-09-30 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this long awaited follow-on volume to his Archbishop of Canterburys Lent book, The Shape of Living, the renowned theologian David Ford explores how we can live wisely not poring earnestly over difficult choices, but in the presence of Holy Wisdom - Gods darling and delight, playing in his presence and over the whole world. Such wisdom fires our hearts and imaginations, as well as our intellects, and enables us to live fully open to God, to others, and to lifes complexities, in freedom and joy. Playfulness is something many of us leave behind in youth, yet it is a primary characteristic of the kingdom of God the joy of play pervades creation and should pervade our lives. Drawing on scripture and the poetry of Micheal OSiadhail, David Ford enable us to recover a lost dimension in our Christian living.
Download or read book Crisis and Change written by Jan-Olav Henriksen and published by Cambridge Scholars Publishing. This book was released on 2012-03-15 with total page 260 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A common basis for the project on which this volume is based is that one cannot understand religion and ethics without paying attention to the different contexts in, and by means of which, these cultural elements are expressed. This approach makes both religion and ethics liquid, and allows us to see them as based on specific contingencies rather than as expressions of some essential features. The changing societal and cultural conditions in late modern Western societies pose new challenges for established religion, theology and ethics: Not only does religion itself appear to be in some kind of crisis, but also many of the established ways of understanding and doing religion, theology and ethics appear obsolete, inadequate or dated. Against such a backdrop, the articles in the present volume represent attempts to rethink theology and religion with regard to these late modern conditions. The volume is the result of a joint undertaking of two research groups, one based in Åbo, Finland, and the other in Oslo, Norway, which have since 2006 focused on exploring the contextual character of theology in understanding both Christian belief and Christian ethics. The challenge of the idea that Christianity appears in new ways – and in “new” contexts, and of investigating what that means, is pursued in various ways.
Download or read book Befriending Life written by Beth Porter and published by Image. This book was released on 2002-09-17 with total page 242 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A beautiful collection of reminiscences celebrating the life and works of the bestselling author of The Wounded Healer, The Return of the Prodigal Son, and The Inner Voice of Love. Henri Nouwen (1932-96) was a Catholic priest who taught at several theological institutions and universities in his home country of the Netherlands and in the United States. He spent the final years of his life teaching and ministering at the L'Arche Daybreak Community in Toronto, Canada. His writings have touched millions of readers around the world, and since his death, recognition of their enduring value has continued to grow. Oprah Winfrey, one of Nouwen's many admirers, ran an extensive excerpt from The Return of the Prodigal Son in her magazine, O, with Hillary Clinton contributing an introduction revealing the profound effect Nouwen had on her own life. Nouwen's influence was not limited to the printed page. His one-on-one encounters as a lecturer, teacher, and spiritual guide, and as a leader at the L'Arche Daybreak Community, a home for people with mental and physical disabilities, enriched the lives of a wide variety of people. Now, Befriending Life brings together thoughtful, heartfelt remembrances of Nouwen by those who knew him best, from members of the L'Arche community to such prominent figures as Joseph Cardinal Bernardin of Chicago and Hillary Clinton. Their personal reflections on his life both on and off the page magnificently capture his spirit, compassion, and wisdom. With a wealth of quotations from Nouwen throughout, Befriending Life, like Nouwen's own great books, will inspire readers in all walks of life.
