"The secret of L'Arche is relationship: meeting people, not through the filters of certitudes, ideologies, idealism or judgments, but heart to heart; listening to people with their pain, their joy, their hope, their history, listening to their heartbeats."
(Jean Vanier, founder of L'Arche)
In 1964, in the small French town of Trosly-Breuil, Jean Vanier and Father Thomas Philippe invited two men with disabilities to come share life with them in their home. After first visiting the men in an institution, Jean and Father Thomas believed that a warm and loving home would significantly improve the men's lives. However, they were soon to realize that creating a home with the two men and sharing a simple life would also revolutionize their own hearts and minds. The mutual profound and transformative effects of L'Arche were discovered, and the message began to spread.

From those humble beginnings in France, L'Arche has grown to encompass over 120 communities in 30 countries throughout the world. L'Arche communities are more than houses; they are places where people from all different backgrounds come to share life and learn what it means to be human. The photographs presented here detail the beauty of L'Arche communities, from the simple joys of daily life to the innermost thoughts and feelings of those who live there.

"To be human is to be bonded together, each with our weaknesses and strengths, because we need each other." -Jean Vanier
"When we say "I love you"and say it from the heart, we can give another person new life, new hope, new courage." -Henri Nouwen
Photographs Copyright John Dylong 2002