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Jean Vanier: Portrait of a Free Man
The life of Jean Vanier, founder of l’Arche, who changed the way the world views disability
It’s a crazy story. In August 1964 a thirty-six-year-old Canadian from a famous family – one who has already joined the navy during war at age thirteen, become an officer, earned a PhD, and taught ethics at the University of Toronto -- takes up residence in a little house he just bought in the village of Trosly, France, with two mentally disabled men he has removed from a care home. The house, which he calls l’Arche (the Ark), has neither water nor electricity. His plan? None. He is just convinced he has to do it, touched by the silent cry of these men shut up in the gloomy, violent institution where he found them. His example is contagious; within months the community has grown to over fifty.
Jean Vanier is known and loved around the world for having created L'Arche, those unique communities of people with disabilities and their volunteer caregivers in more than one hundred and fifty sites on five continents. But Vanier is also a philosopher, a spiritual master who touches believers and nonbelievers alike, a tireless messenger of peace and ecumenism, and an adventurer with life full of twists and turns. Anne-Sophie Constant's literary biography paints a rare portrait of this extraordinary man and the events and influences that shaped his destiny.
“The story of Jean Vanier is the story of a free man – a man who knew how to become himself, who knew how to free himself from restraints, opinions, and prejudices; from intellectual, religious or moral habits; from his epoch; from popular opinion. . . . Jean Vanier has transformed the lives of thousands and thousands of mentally disabled people. And he has transformed the understanding of thousands of people regarding the disabilities of their own children and of people with disabilities. Where we see only failure, disgrace, impossibility, limit, weakness, ugliness, and suffering, Jean Vanier sees beauty. And he knows how to open the eyes of others to see it.”
It’s a crazy story. In August 1964 a thirty-six-year-old Canadian from a famous family – one who has already joined the navy during war at age thirteen, become an officer, earned a PhD, and taught ethics at the University of Toronto -- takes up residence in a little house he just bought in the village of Trosly, France, with two mentally disabled men he has removed from a care home. The house, which he calls l’Arche (the Ark), has neither water nor electricity. His plan? None. He is just convinced he has to do it, touched by the silent cry of these men shut up in the gloomy, violent institution where he found them. His example is contagious; within months the community has grown to over fifty.
Jean Vanier is known and loved around the world for having created L'Arche, those unique communities of people with disabilities and their volunteer caregivers in more than one hundred and fifty sites on five continents. But Vanier is also a philosopher, a spiritual master who touches believers and nonbelievers alike, a tireless messenger of peace and ecumenism, and an adventurer with life full of twists and turns. Anne-Sophie Constant's literary biography paints a rare portrait of this extraordinary man and the events and influences that shaped his destiny.
“The story of Jean Vanier is the story of a free man – a man who knew how to become himself, who knew how to free himself from restraints, opinions, and prejudices; from intellectual, religious or moral habits; from his epoch; from popular opinion. . . . Jean Vanier has transformed the lives of thousands and thousands of mentally disabled people. And he has transformed the understanding of thousands of people regarding the disabilities of their own children and of people with disabilities. Where we see only failure, disgrace, impossibility, limit, weakness, ugliness, and suffering, Jean Vanier sees beauty. And he knows how to open the eyes of others to see it.”
- GenresBiographyNonfiction
250 pages, Paperback
Published August 4, 2019
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699 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
June 26, 2019
Thanks to Netgalley and Plough House Publishing for a digital galley in exchange for an honest review.
A truly inspirational story of a man who devoted his life to helping others. The late Jean Vanier was the fourth child in a family of five born to former Canadian Governor General Georges Vanier and his wife Pauline Archer. A Navy man, a philosopher, a theologian and a humanitarian, Jean Vanier is most well known for founding L'Arche in 1964, an international community for people with developmental disabilities and those who assist them. Presently there are 147 L'Arche communities spread over five continents.
Anne Sophie Constant takes readers from Vanier's upbringing at home in Canada and abroad and carries us forward into his latter years. Jean Vanier spent a great portion of his life (1964-2019) advocating that people with disabilities are teachers and not a burden on their family
Now if I have a few quibbles, it's more to do with the writing. The book is translated and ASC loves her quotes and occasionally there seems to be more of a whirlwind jump of ideas rather than a steady flow.
Honestly though it's the story of the man that sticks with me now.
Goodreads review published 25/06/19
Expected publication. 04 /08/19
A truly inspirational story of a man who devoted his life to helping others. The late Jean Vanier was the fourth child in a family of five born to former Canadian Governor General Georges Vanier and his wife Pauline Archer. A Navy man, a philosopher, a theologian and a humanitarian, Jean Vanier is most well known for founding L'Arche in 1964, an international community for people with developmental disabilities and those who assist them. Presently there are 147 L'Arche communities spread over five continents.
Anne Sophie Constant takes readers from Vanier's upbringing at home in Canada and abroad and carries us forward into his latter years. Jean Vanier spent a great portion of his life (1964-2019) advocating that people with disabilities are teachers and not a burden on their family
Now if I have a few quibbles, it's more to do with the writing. The book is translated and ASC loves her quotes and occasionally there seems to be more of a whirlwind jump of ideas rather than a steady flow.
Honestly though it's the story of the man that sticks with me now.
Goodreads review published 25/06/19
Expected publication. 04 /08/19
August 23, 2019
Jean Vanier: Portrait of a Free Man by Anne-Sophie Constant is a well-written and informative biography of a selfless man who made such a difference in countless lives. Jean Vanier, at the age of thirteen, joined the military and became an officer during his eight years there. After obtaining a PhD, he became an ethics lecturer at the University of Toronto. In 1964, at the age of thirty-six, the young Canadian established a home for two mentally disabled men in Trosly, France. The cottage, without running water or electricity was named L'Arche (Ark). The reputation of the small endeavour quickly spread throughout the world. It was a simple concept: offer shelter, compassion and protection to the mentally disabled and look after them with the aid of volunteer caregivers. During his lifetime, one hundred and fifty L'Arche homes were opened on five continents. Jean Vanier, a man from a prominent family, gave away all of his possessions in order to help people who were in desperate need of care. His work brought awareness of the plight of the mentally disabled and their families and changed the way they were understood. A humble man with a simple plan changed their world. Thank you to Plough Publishing and NetGalley for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.
September 4, 2019
“Jean Vanier, Portrait of a Free Man” is an inspiring book. It is about the fascinating life of Jean Vanier (September 10, 1928 – May 7, 2019) a Canadian philosopher and humanitarian who founded networks of communities which house and advocate for people living with intellectual disabilities.
From 1964, after discovering the terrible living conditions that psychiatric patients had to endure in asylums in France, Jean Vanier started living with a small group of people with intellectual disabilities who he drew back from psychiatric hospitals. It was the beginning of the L’Arche, a network of communities where both people with and without disabilities and their caregivers live together. This way of dealing with those people has radically transformed the understanding of society regarding mental illnesses and mental disabilities in the world.
I have known about the L'Arche communities but not much about the founder and his background. “Jean Vanier, Portrait of a Free Man” is a well-documented book which filled this gap.
I highly recommend this book.
Read: July 2019
Source: NetGalley and the Publisher: Plough Publishing House
From 1964, after discovering the terrible living conditions that psychiatric patients had to endure in asylums in France, Jean Vanier started living with a small group of people with intellectual disabilities who he drew back from psychiatric hospitals. It was the beginning of the L’Arche, a network of communities where both people with and without disabilities and their caregivers live together. This way of dealing with those people has radically transformed the understanding of society regarding mental illnesses and mental disabilities in the world.
I have known about the L'Arche communities but not much about the founder and his background. “Jean Vanier, Portrait of a Free Man” is a well-documented book which filled this gap.
I highly recommend this book.
Read: July 2019
Source: NetGalley and the Publisher: Plough Publishing House
August 6, 2019
Wow! There are some people that you read about and think about how little you have done with your own life to help others. Jean Vanier came from a famous and wealthy family and had the compassion to create a place for two mentally disabled men to live that he didn't even know well. Who can say they would do the same? From there, he created homes for disabled people and volunteers to live. I was very humbled reading this, as it is amazing at how much he accomplished.
August 21, 2019
Summary: A biography of Jean Vanier, the founder and guide of the L'Arche homes where assistants and cognitively disabled live together in community.
On May 7, 2019, one of the most remarkable saints of our era went to his eternal rest and reward. Anne-Sophie Constant, who enjoyed extraordinary access to this man, completed earlier in the year her biography of Jean Vanier, founder of the L'Arche houses for the disabled. She describes a man who lived at peace, and as a truly free man during his life. She writes in introduction:
The story of Jean Vanier is the story of a free man – a man who knew how to become himself, who knew how to free himself from restraints and prejudices; from intellectual, religious, or moral habits; from his epoch; from popular opinion (p. x).
The biography traces his life from childhood. Raised in a devout Catholic home, he learned a life of service from a distinguished father, an amputee survivor of World War I who eventually became the Secretary General of Canada. Vanier enlisted in the Navy after World War II was declared, serving on the H.M.S Vanguard on a royal trip to South Africa, meeting the future Queen Elizabeth. A rising officer, he later experiences a near death experience falling overboard, and loses his fear of death. After the war, he leaves the service, and while living with his parents, when his father was ambassador to France, he meets the future Pope John XXIII and the philosopher Jacques Maritain.
His travels take him to the hospitality houses of Dorothy Day and Friendship House in Harlem, places practicing radical hospitality toward those on society's margins. Studying philosophy and theology preparing for the priesthood, he joins the Eau Vive (Living Water) community for meditation and prayer, only to find himself in leadership of the community during a conflict-fraught period, then later to a Cistercian abbey. Father Thomas, a professor and friend accepted the chaplaincy of Val Fleuri in Trosley, a facility for cognitively disabled men.
Vanier joined him in Trosley, first helping in the work at Val Fleuri, and then in July of 1964, when he decides to buy a home and invite some intellectually disabled men to live with him. The home was named L'Arche, (The Ark). Knowing little what should be done, he discovers that the greatest need of these men is to know they are loved. Constant writes:
Jean has a profound intuition of human beings and of their beauty. "They don't realize that they are so beautiful!" he says. "They are so crushed with guilt and feel very dirty. They don't have any self-confidence. They do not realize that they are loved. They don't know how valuable and how precious they are" (p. 75).
They live as a spiritual community and Vanier and his assistants discover that these men minister to them as they form a spiritual community. And so a movement begins.
Constant describes the spread of this movement from one house to an international movement of 150 houses in 80 countries. She also describes a process where Vanier moves from a leader to a guide to a messenger of the gospel for the disabled. As he ages, Constant chronicles Vanier's ability to let go, to relinquish leadership, even as he represents this movement in the highest circles of the Catholic church.
The biography captures the genius of Vanier's work:
Jean Vanier does not "take care of" people with intellectual disabilities. He lives with them. He lives with L'Arch members Eric, Doudou, Pauline, and Rene. (p. 111).
Vanier's freedom is of the man who listens to the voice of Jesus, the voice speaking within him rather than hewing to the pressures and expectations of society. He does not fear making mistakes, and he does make them. He does not fear being with those of seeming low status on the margins. He is one who has died "to the 'false me' of our social constructs and fears" (p. 117).
The biography describes the life of someone who first came away to listen to God, and thus was able to hear the call of God to community of the intellectually disabled who were precious to God, and fellow members of Christ's body, people to be lived with. While not all will be called to the kind of work Vanier did, Constant's biography offers the hope of the radical freedom that comes as we yield ourselves to the God who bids us to listen to his voice, to walk in his ways, and to extend his love in the world.
________________________________
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.
On May 7, 2019, one of the most remarkable saints of our era went to his eternal rest and reward. Anne-Sophie Constant, who enjoyed extraordinary access to this man, completed earlier in the year her biography of Jean Vanier, founder of the L'Arche houses for the disabled. She describes a man who lived at peace, and as a truly free man during his life. She writes in introduction:
The story of Jean Vanier is the story of a free man – a man who knew how to become himself, who knew how to free himself from restraints and prejudices; from intellectual, religious, or moral habits; from his epoch; from popular opinion (p. x).
The biography traces his life from childhood. Raised in a devout Catholic home, he learned a life of service from a distinguished father, an amputee survivor of World War I who eventually became the Secretary General of Canada. Vanier enlisted in the Navy after World War II was declared, serving on the H.M.S Vanguard on a royal trip to South Africa, meeting the future Queen Elizabeth. A rising officer, he later experiences a near death experience falling overboard, and loses his fear of death. After the war, he leaves the service, and while living with his parents, when his father was ambassador to France, he meets the future Pope John XXIII and the philosopher Jacques Maritain.
His travels take him to the hospitality houses of Dorothy Day and Friendship House in Harlem, places practicing radical hospitality toward those on society's margins. Studying philosophy and theology preparing for the priesthood, he joins the Eau Vive (Living Water) community for meditation and prayer, only to find himself in leadership of the community during a conflict-fraught period, then later to a Cistercian abbey. Father Thomas, a professor and friend accepted the chaplaincy of Val Fleuri in Trosley, a facility for cognitively disabled men.
Vanier joined him in Trosley, first helping in the work at Val Fleuri, and then in July of 1964, when he decides to buy a home and invite some intellectually disabled men to live with him. The home was named L'Arche, (The Ark). Knowing little what should be done, he discovers that the greatest need of these men is to know they are loved. Constant writes:
Jean has a profound intuition of human beings and of their beauty. "They don't realize that they are so beautiful!" he says. "They are so crushed with guilt and feel very dirty. They don't have any self-confidence. They do not realize that they are loved. They don't know how valuable and how precious they are" (p. 75).
They live as a spiritual community and Vanier and his assistants discover that these men minister to them as they form a spiritual community. And so a movement begins.
Constant describes the spread of this movement from one house to an international movement of 150 houses in 80 countries. She also describes a process where Vanier moves from a leader to a guide to a messenger of the gospel for the disabled. As he ages, Constant chronicles Vanier's ability to let go, to relinquish leadership, even as he represents this movement in the highest circles of the Catholic church.
The biography captures the genius of Vanier's work:
Jean Vanier does not "take care of" people with intellectual disabilities. He lives with them. He lives with L'Arch members Eric, Doudou, Pauline, and Rene. (p. 111).
Vanier's freedom is of the man who listens to the voice of Jesus, the voice speaking within him rather than hewing to the pressures and expectations of society. He does not fear making mistakes, and he does make them. He does not fear being with those of seeming low status on the margins. He is one who has died "to the 'false me' of our social constructs and fears" (p. 117).
The biography describes the life of someone who first came away to listen to God, and thus was able to hear the call of God to community of the intellectually disabled who were precious to God, and fellow members of Christ's body, people to be lived with. While not all will be called to the kind of work Vanier did, Constant's biography offers the hope of the radical freedom that comes as we yield ourselves to the God who bids us to listen to his voice, to walk in his ways, and to extend his love in the world.
________________________________
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.
August 3, 2019
A man who loved silence but dedicated his life to others, believing that faith required action. A soldier who lived peacefully, bring peace to others. An intellectual who found his true being in relationship not understanding, who believed, in fact, that that understanding followed trust and obedience.
Jean Vanier, who died in May at the age of 90, was, in my opinion, a hero and a saint. Beloved by thousands of ordinary people of all faiths, he was also admired by Pope John Paul II and the current Pope Francis.
Jean Vanier started the L’Archer movement, communities in which the disabled live side by side with people without disabilities who are there as friends, as much as caregivers and who learn more from the people they are in relationship and serve than they give. The assistants at the various L’Arche communities speak of the joy they’ve found in these relationships that is greater than any they have ever known before.
Coming from an affluent, highly educated Canadian family, Jean Vanier followed his father’s footsteps and served in the military during World War II and after. He left his family at 13 to attend a naval academy. His father’s trust, demonstrated in his allowing his young son to follow his heart, gave Vanier a confidence in himself that lasted a lifetime.
Just as Jean knew he needed to leave home to serve in the Navy, he later knew he needed to leave the navy and discover another life. He wandered, studied, and searched for what would give his life meaning. Ultimately, he found it not in education but in serving others, specifically the poor.
Raised in a devout family, Vanier wanted to follow Jesus and was most impressed by Jesus’ command to leave everything and follow him. In addition, he took Jesus’ words that he was to be found amongst the most vulnerable deeply to heart.
In the sixties, living conditions for the disabled were frequently appalling. They were excluded from society, pariahs, locked away in institutions and neglected or cared for by family members who usually received no support or acceptance from the rest of their communities. Seeing this, Vanier was moved to create a small community freeing several men from an institution. Without money, without followers, Vanier began to discover what would give his life the most meaning. Now, there are hundreds of L’Arche (which means “The Ark” and refers to God’s covenant with his people as well as, to Vanier, the Catholic view of Mary as an ark that carried Jesus) throughout the world.
Jean Vanier: Portrait of a Free Man is a biography of this man that charts his spiritual growth as well as the literal events of his life. This short book (153 pages) by a friend of Vanier’s, Anne-Sophie Constant, explores his spiritual life and the goals, struggles, and dreams of his L’Arche communities. In preparing to write this review, I underlined ideas that I thought were important, ending up with almost as many underlined sentences as not. I read the book quickly, unable to leave this man and his work.
The book is a beautifully written testament to a great, though humble, man. Although I already admired Vanier the book brought him to life in a new way and presented such an inspirational account of his work that I felt tempted to drop everything and join one of these communities.
I think that this book provides a meaningful experience to everyone, no matter what their beliefs (or non-beliefs) are in its portrayal of how meaning can be found, can be created, when people come together valuing service and relationship, elevating love as the highest value in life. Even for those of us that don’t participate in this world, for people caught up in creating careers and following ambition, it is a reminder how participating in loving relationships provides us with the greatest satisfaction and that accepting and caring about others frees us from the cage of a too narrow focus on material goods.
A wonderful, inspirational story, well told by Constant, that left me feeling peaceful and happy.
Jean Vanier, who died in May at the age of 90, was, in my opinion, a hero and a saint. Beloved by thousands of ordinary people of all faiths, he was also admired by Pope John Paul II and the current Pope Francis.
Jean Vanier started the L’Archer movement, communities in which the disabled live side by side with people without disabilities who are there as friends, as much as caregivers and who learn more from the people they are in relationship and serve than they give. The assistants at the various L’Arche communities speak of the joy they’ve found in these relationships that is greater than any they have ever known before.
Coming from an affluent, highly educated Canadian family, Jean Vanier followed his father’s footsteps and served in the military during World War II and after. He left his family at 13 to attend a naval academy. His father’s trust, demonstrated in his allowing his young son to follow his heart, gave Vanier a confidence in himself that lasted a lifetime.
Just as Jean knew he needed to leave home to serve in the Navy, he later knew he needed to leave the navy and discover another life. He wandered, studied, and searched for what would give his life meaning. Ultimately, he found it not in education but in serving others, specifically the poor.
Raised in a devout family, Vanier wanted to follow Jesus and was most impressed by Jesus’ command to leave everything and follow him. In addition, he took Jesus’ words that he was to be found amongst the most vulnerable deeply to heart.
In the sixties, living conditions for the disabled were frequently appalling. They were excluded from society, pariahs, locked away in institutions and neglected or cared for by family members who usually received no support or acceptance from the rest of their communities. Seeing this, Vanier was moved to create a small community freeing several men from an institution. Without money, without followers, Vanier began to discover what would give his life the most meaning. Now, there are hundreds of L’Arche (which means “The Ark” and refers to God’s covenant with his people as well as, to Vanier, the Catholic view of Mary as an ark that carried Jesus) throughout the world.
Jean Vanier: Portrait of a Free Man is a biography of this man that charts his spiritual growth as well as the literal events of his life. This short book (153 pages) by a friend of Vanier’s, Anne-Sophie Constant, explores his spiritual life and the goals, struggles, and dreams of his L’Arche communities. In preparing to write this review, I underlined ideas that I thought were important, ending up with almost as many underlined sentences as not. I read the book quickly, unable to leave this man and his work.
The book is a beautifully written testament to a great, though humble, man. Although I already admired Vanier the book brought him to life in a new way and presented such an inspirational account of his work that I felt tempted to drop everything and join one of these communities.
I think that this book provides a meaningful experience to everyone, no matter what their beliefs (or non-beliefs) are in its portrayal of how meaning can be found, can be created, when people come together valuing service and relationship, elevating love as the highest value in life. Even for those of us that don’t participate in this world, for people caught up in creating careers and following ambition, it is a reminder how participating in loving relationships provides us with the greatest satisfaction and that accepting and caring about others frees us from the cage of a too narrow focus on material goods.
A wonderful, inspirational story, well told by Constant, that left me feeling peaceful and happy.
June 3, 2019
We live in a world that makes a fuss over men who run around chasing each other and throwing balls for a living. We make idols of surgically-enhanced actors or actresses in superhero constumes or singers who leave their pants at home when they perform. We love spectacle. We love drama. We love obnoxious, outrageous behavior. But, much of the time, the true heroes are those who live out of the limelight, serving their fellow humans every day with whatever resources they have.
The book Jean Vanier: Portrait of a Free Man by Anne-Sophie Constant is the story of a true hero. Jean Vanier was a hero to all the people whose lives he touched through his love, kindness, and practical care. He was a man who quietly lived to serve people whom society would call “the least of these”. He saw each person inside the disability or deformity that would send most of us running in the opposite direction. He saw their worth, and even, their beauty.
Jean was not planning to spend his adult life in this way: he had been in the navy, then lived a very religious life of meditation and prayer, and, for a short time, as a professor.
What changed him was a visit to a care home for those with intellectual disabilities and his interactions with two of the men there. “I heard this mute cry…a cry inviting me to be their friend.” After that visit, he couldn’t stop thinking about those people. So he began to visit the places where disabled people were kept and he was appalled by the miserable conditions in which they lived.
Jean decided to purchase a small house and invite some of the disabled men to live with him. At this point he had no financial plan to support them, but acted out of the impulse of love. And just by being willing to take the first step and reach out to those in need, the rest of what was needed followed. People volunteered to serve, a board of directors was formed, Jean chose the name “L’Arche”, and they began a life of community, of family, in this little home in Trosley in the North of France.
What began as a way to serve the needs of a handful of people with disabilities flourished into a worldwide movement. Today there are 154 L’Arche communities worldwide on 5 continents. When I visited the L’Arche website, with all those beautiful faces, my respect grew even more for Jean Vanier and his life of love and service.
I highly recommend this book, which will be published on August 4th, to those who want to read about people who really made a difference in the world and whose legacy continues to change lives after they’ve passed on. Jean Vanier’s life made a difference to many and will continue to do so for years to come.
The book Jean Vanier: Portrait of a Free Man by Anne-Sophie Constant is the story of a true hero. Jean Vanier was a hero to all the people whose lives he touched through his love, kindness, and practical care. He was a man who quietly lived to serve people whom society would call “the least of these”. He saw each person inside the disability or deformity that would send most of us running in the opposite direction. He saw their worth, and even, their beauty.
Jean was not planning to spend his adult life in this way: he had been in the navy, then lived a very religious life of meditation and prayer, and, for a short time, as a professor.
What changed him was a visit to a care home for those with intellectual disabilities and his interactions with two of the men there. “I heard this mute cry…a cry inviting me to be their friend.” After that visit, he couldn’t stop thinking about those people. So he began to visit the places where disabled people were kept and he was appalled by the miserable conditions in which they lived.
Jean decided to purchase a small house and invite some of the disabled men to live with him. At this point he had no financial plan to support them, but acted out of the impulse of love. And just by being willing to take the first step and reach out to those in need, the rest of what was needed followed. People volunteered to serve, a board of directors was formed, Jean chose the name “L’Arche”, and they began a life of community, of family, in this little home in Trosley in the North of France.
What began as a way to serve the needs of a handful of people with disabilities flourished into a worldwide movement. Today there are 154 L’Arche communities worldwide on 5 continents. When I visited the L’Arche website, with all those beautiful faces, my respect grew even more for Jean Vanier and his life of love and service.
I highly recommend this book, which will be published on August 4th, to those who want to read about people who really made a difference in the world and whose legacy continues to change lives after they’ve passed on. Jean Vanier’s life made a difference to many and will continue to do so for years to come.
June 22, 2019
Portrait of a Free Man
Who is Jean Vanier:
Jean Vanier is the founder of L'Arche communities, where a small number of people with and without intellectual disabilities live together in a spirit of conviviality and sharing. This is an expensive biography devoted to him by Anne-Sophie Constant and a nice presentation of a man out of the ordinary. Reading this book, one inevitably feels the friendship that united them …..
The pen of Anne Sophie Constant is crystal clear she paints a portrait of a hero to all people. A man who lived to serve those whom the society rejected: the disabled and those plagued with deformity that would send us running. This is a very religious book that emphasis on how much of the gospel is lived by.
Mr. Vanier worked as a Canadian navy officer and professor before turning to charity work and in 1964 he founded L’Arche and the charity now has 154 communities in 38 countries. Ms. Constant tells us how he managed to reach so many people and travelled the world to encourage dialogue across religions. He was a teacher and moral leader who also helped found a group called Faith and Light now composed of 1500 communities in 83 countries. This is extensive documentation on his life and achievements. On the dark side, L’Arche was not exempt from damaging incidents of abuse in the past. The founder took fast action to expel the abusers and today there is no mention of such incident.
While reading this book I had chills. Right or wrong it brought back memories of communes and sects that were the rage in the 60, 70 and 80 where a charismatic leader lured floc of people to their compound, bringing a great amount of money and free help by the followers. Jean Vanier was like an apostle where he went people floc to his side but the difference is Jean was a leader who grew up in a faith-filled Catholic family and discovered the treasure hidden in those who are intellectually disabled and wanted to help. That was his mission and he held to it till is death. Jean Vanier was a hero to many and loved around the world for his devotion.
Jean Vanier died in Paris, France, May 7th 2019 at age 90 he will be remembered as a pioneer who improved the lives of so many people.
I didn’t know of this extraordinary but simple man and less about his achievements. I had to Google his name and his organisation to know more. Too curious to see if L’arche had residences in my hometown and it does…simple residences that perfectly blend in neighborhoods and are run by caring and loving caregivers.
This book will last in my mind for a long time….well-done Ms. Constant.
My thanks to Plough Publishing and NetGalleys for this ARC
Who is Jean Vanier:
Jean Vanier is the founder of L'Arche communities, where a small number of people with and without intellectual disabilities live together in a spirit of conviviality and sharing. This is an expensive biography devoted to him by Anne-Sophie Constant and a nice presentation of a man out of the ordinary. Reading this book, one inevitably feels the friendship that united them …..
The pen of Anne Sophie Constant is crystal clear she paints a portrait of a hero to all people. A man who lived to serve those whom the society rejected: the disabled and those plagued with deformity that would send us running. This is a very religious book that emphasis on how much of the gospel is lived by.
Mr. Vanier worked as a Canadian navy officer and professor before turning to charity work and in 1964 he founded L’Arche and the charity now has 154 communities in 38 countries. Ms. Constant tells us how he managed to reach so many people and travelled the world to encourage dialogue across religions. He was a teacher and moral leader who also helped found a group called Faith and Light now composed of 1500 communities in 83 countries. This is extensive documentation on his life and achievements. On the dark side, L’Arche was not exempt from damaging incidents of abuse in the past. The founder took fast action to expel the abusers and today there is no mention of such incident.
While reading this book I had chills. Right or wrong it brought back memories of communes and sects that were the rage in the 60, 70 and 80 where a charismatic leader lured floc of people to their compound, bringing a great amount of money and free help by the followers. Jean Vanier was like an apostle where he went people floc to his side but the difference is Jean was a leader who grew up in a faith-filled Catholic family and discovered the treasure hidden in those who are intellectually disabled and wanted to help. That was his mission and he held to it till is death. Jean Vanier was a hero to many and loved around the world for his devotion.
Jean Vanier died in Paris, France, May 7th 2019 at age 90 he will be remembered as a pioneer who improved the lives of so many people.
I didn’t know of this extraordinary but simple man and less about his achievements. I had to Google his name and his organisation to know more. Too curious to see if L’arche had residences in my hometown and it does…simple residences that perfectly blend in neighborhoods and are run by caring and loving caregivers.
This book will last in my mind for a long time….well-done Ms. Constant.
My thanks to Plough Publishing and NetGalleys for this ARC
July 21, 2019
Jean Vanier, who died recently, was the founder of the L’Arche communities, where adults with intellectual disabilities live alongside those without. There are today 154 such communities in 38 countries. This is an excellent and thoroughly researched biography of Vanier, and an inspirational account of a remarkable man. It brings him alive in all his complexity, and I found the book a fascinating and powerful read.
August 10, 2019
It’s a curious thing about us humans that we often delay our acquaintanceship with the work of remarkable humans until they die. For that reason, this August may be perfect timing for this new release from Plough Publishing House as the world mourns the loss of Jean Vanier, age 90, in May. For those like me who have circled around the writing and wisdom of the man who traded in a life of the political and academic elite to found L’Arche, an international federation of communities spread over 37 countries, for people with developmental disabilities and those who assist them. I find these kinds of biographies that provide background and context for the lives of those who so deeply influence the world helpful as a launch into the primary sources written by the figures themselves. I’m looking forward to reading deeply through Vanier’s writing and grateful to Anne-Sophie Constant and Plough for inviting me into the circle of those who knew the man firsthand.
More than anything I want to, in the words of the Apostle Paul, put on Jean Vanier as he put on Christ. I want to become more fully human in the process of companioning others to do the same. Thanks to this portrait of Vanier’s life I will always imagine the Kingdom of Christ-like the crowd who gathered for L’Arche’s fiftieth-anniversary celebration. Here’s the description from the book’s epilogue:
May each protest I offer against all that is inhuman and unlove have the air of the celebration that the Kingdom is here and now and through what Vanier described as the “sacrament of the poor” can be lived in the good company of Jesus who invites us all, like little children, into the belovedness of God.
More than anything I want to, in the words of the Apostle Paul, put on Jean Vanier as he put on Christ. I want to become more fully human in the process of companioning others to do the same. Thanks to this portrait of Vanier’s life I will always imagine the Kingdom of Christ-like the crowd who gathered for L’Arche’s fiftieth-anniversary celebration. Here’s the description from the book’s epilogue:
“[The festival} took place on September 27 [2014]. To the surprise of the passersby, there was a gigantic parade of seven thousand people marching from the Hôtel de Ville to the Place de la République. The crowd shouted, sang, and danced in the streets as colorful balloons floated into the air. “What are you demonstrating against?” people asked. “Against nothing! We’re celebrating! Come dance and eat cake with us.”… So they danced on the Place de la République - marchers, wheelchairs, and pedestrians all mixed together.”
May each protest I offer against all that is inhuman and unlove have the air of the celebration that the Kingdom is here and now and through what Vanier described as the “sacrament of the poor” can be lived in the good company of Jesus who invites us all, like little children, into the belovedness of God.
October 18, 2019
I asked my friend who works with special needs folks if she'd heard of "Jeen Vayneer" and she squinted and said no. I described him and she said, "Oh! Jzun Von-yay." Yeah, that one. I don't like saying French things unless I'm provoked. It feels uppity.
Jean was Canadian and the opposite of uppity. He was almost a philosophy professor when he was 30. Then he decided to spend his life with the mentally disabled. He died at the age of 90 in May 2019.
The reason I picked up this book about Jean's life is not because I work with special needs folks but because in 2014 I read a quote of him talking about God and I wrote that quote down and I periodically thought about that quote and if something sticks in my mind like that through the years then it's time to investigate, so what I did was I picked up this little book about Jean and walked through his life with him.
So who was Jean? Why did he get to have sit-down conversations with Pope Francis?
Jean was...
-a free man
-a man who knew how to become himself
-a man who knew how to free himself from restraints and prejudices
-able to free himself from the cultural current most of us are swimming in
-able to free himself from popular opinion
But how does someone do that? I like when people like me. It's nice. It's more than nice. It's great. It's like food. Not healthy food, more like Swedish Fish, mmm so sweet and so detrimental to my health, so tooth-rottingly delicious.
Here's how: Jean knew how to listen to his own inner voice.
But what good is that? Sounds like new age mumbo jumbo. It's not, but it sounds like it.
Your inner voice is a force that pulls you toward justice, liberty, and light.
Try it. Something might surprise you.
You will also experience great loss, disappointment, rejection, and abandonment.
But if you're going to really live, you have to risk it. Jean dared to cast off, leave the comfy & safe shore and sail into the unknown. Jean wanted to live not necessarily for Jesus but with Jesus. God is not inaccessible, he thought. God is a fellow traveler and guide who leads us into the mystery of life. Go. Sell everything you have and give to the poor.
The book opens with a quote I will close with:
"There is but nostalgia in love. When will I seize what has seized me?"
Read
August 11, 2019See my full review at The Emerald City Book Review. A copy was received for review purposes from the publisher. No other compensation was received, and all opinions expressed are my own.When I was living in a community with adults with developmental disabilities, one of my colleagues told me he had been inspired to take up this work by the writings of Jean Vanier, founder of the international L'Arche movement. I was intrigued, because I had never heard of the man or the movement, and I wanted to learn more.
So I read Becoming Human, as an introduction to Vanier's philosophy. In this brief book, he presents ideas about the human condition, our experience of loneliness and belonging, captivity and freedom, and the difficult but necessary path to forgiveness. Behind every word is woven his experience of living together with the so-called "disabled," who have been his most radiant teachers of what it means to be human.
This experience is not often explicitly described, and given my interest in this realm specifically, I found that somewhat disappointing. When Vanier talked about how one or another of the residents of L'Arche had been transformed by love, I wanted more details. What were the day-to-day practices, what were the steps of the journey?
But that is not really what the book is about. More a description of general principles than of particular examples (though some powerful ones are given), it's full of gentle, timeless wisdom that deserves to be slowly pondered in relation to one's own life. Thus is the fruit of the spirit developed, in patient dedication to the way of self-knowledge, and Vanier was clearly a humble but very dedicated servant of this impulse.
I still wanted to know more about L'Arche and its founder, so I was delighted when the opportunity came to review a new publication, Jean Vanier: Portrait of a Free Man, fresh off the press from Plough Publishing House. This biographical work by a longtime friend of Vanier's has been translated from the 2014 French edition and updated for the English version. It's about as up-to-the minute as such as book can be, as it concludes with an epilogue written in January, 2019, and Vanier died just a few months later.
The beginning of the story goes back a full century, though, with Vanier's father Georges and his baptism-by-fire in the First World War. His heroism and ensuing life as a diplomat -- as the Canadian ambassador to France, among other things -- indelibly shaped the life of his young family, including the third child, Jean. A childhood spent in the public eye, moving around with no settled home, with parents strongly committed to moral and civic causes, was an unusual and in many ways not easy upbringing.
There are more surprising twists and turns to the story, which you may discover if you read the book for yourself -- finding out how this boy from a privileged background chose to share his life with the poorest of the poor, the ones most excluded and shunned by society: the intellectually disabled. In the process he found wealth unknown to those who pursue merely worldly success; and even more remarkably, was able to share it with many others who joined or merely heard about his community.
His strong Catholic faith, which he shared with his parents, had much to do with it. Vanier was committed to following Christ, and he found that his way led into this form of poverty. But it was not a way of penitence and sorrow, nor of narrow sectarian religion, but a gateway into joy, happiness, and the abundance of love that embraces all faiths. This is what he found when he spontaneously decided to move into a dilapidated house with two disabled men, to create a home together with them rather than to found an institution. This impulse of joy is what continues to mark the L'Arche movement, which has spread so amazingly worldwide from that one small household, to this day.
It's a beautiful story, and I found it moving and inspiring. My only quibble, once more, is that I wanted more specific details. I know from personal experience that it is not easy to create such a community, and to keep it going through the tempests caused by our human failings, however much one may believe that we are all rooted in the spirit of love. How did they manage? What are the practices, not only the principles, that support such a movement? What were Jean's personal trials, suggested but never thoroughly explored?
But again, that's not really what this book is about. As the subtitle tells us, it's a portrait -- really just a sketch, as that is all that can be given in less than 150 pages. It's not enough to convey all that I would like to know, but sufficient to give an impression of a remarkable man and his amazing journey through life.
The wisdom I most appreciate as I grow older is not found in the evolving of great thoughts and mind-expanding innovation; it's found in the expression of kindness, of the compassionate heart that brings new life into a deadened world by offering a space where the other person can become him- or herself. This wisdom is in its essence so simple, so basic, that we can easily overlook and dismiss it, as we do the "simple" folk who walk unseen in our midst. But at times there appears a person who becomes its representative in such a way that we can clearly perceive its healing power.
Such a man, as this book convincingly portrays him, was Jean Vanier. Even if we are not among the thousands who were directly affected by his work, who experienced him face-to-face, we can be glad to know that such a person existed, and try to learn from his example.
So I read Becoming Human, as an introduction to Vanier's philosophy. In this brief book, he presents ideas about the human condition, our experience of loneliness and belonging, captivity and freedom, and the difficult but necessary path to forgiveness. Behind every word is woven his experience of living together with the so-called "disabled," who have been his most radiant teachers of what it means to be human.
This experience is not often explicitly described, and given my interest in this realm specifically, I found that somewhat disappointing. When Vanier talked about how one or another of the residents of L'Arche had been transformed by love, I wanted more details. What were the day-to-day practices, what were the steps of the journey?
But that is not really what the book is about. More a description of general principles than of particular examples (though some powerful ones are given), it's full of gentle, timeless wisdom that deserves to be slowly pondered in relation to one's own life. Thus is the fruit of the spirit developed, in patient dedication to the way of self-knowledge, and Vanier was clearly a humble but very dedicated servant of this impulse.
I still wanted to know more about L'Arche and its founder, so I was delighted when the opportunity came to review a new publication, Jean Vanier: Portrait of a Free Man, fresh off the press from Plough Publishing House. This biographical work by a longtime friend of Vanier's has been translated from the 2014 French edition and updated for the English version. It's about as up-to-the minute as such as book can be, as it concludes with an epilogue written in January, 2019, and Vanier died just a few months later.
The beginning of the story goes back a full century, though, with Vanier's father Georges and his baptism-by-fire in the First World War. His heroism and ensuing life as a diplomat -- as the Canadian ambassador to France, among other things -- indelibly shaped the life of his young family, including the third child, Jean. A childhood spent in the public eye, moving around with no settled home, with parents strongly committed to moral and civic causes, was an unusual and in many ways not easy upbringing.
There are more surprising twists and turns to the story, which you may discover if you read the book for yourself -- finding out how this boy from a privileged background chose to share his life with the poorest of the poor, the ones most excluded and shunned by society: the intellectually disabled. In the process he found wealth unknown to those who pursue merely worldly success; and even more remarkably, was able to share it with many others who joined or merely heard about his community.
His strong Catholic faith, which he shared with his parents, had much to do with it. Vanier was committed to following Christ, and he found that his way led into this form of poverty. But it was not a way of penitence and sorrow, nor of narrow sectarian religion, but a gateway into joy, happiness, and the abundance of love that embraces all faiths. This is what he found when he spontaneously decided to move into a dilapidated house with two disabled men, to create a home together with them rather than to found an institution. This impulse of joy is what continues to mark the L'Arche movement, which has spread so amazingly worldwide from that one small household, to this day.
It's a beautiful story, and I found it moving and inspiring. My only quibble, once more, is that I wanted more specific details. I know from personal experience that it is not easy to create such a community, and to keep it going through the tempests caused by our human failings, however much one may believe that we are all rooted in the spirit of love. How did they manage? What are the practices, not only the principles, that support such a movement? What were Jean's personal trials, suggested but never thoroughly explored?
But again, that's not really what this book is about. As the subtitle tells us, it's a portrait -- really just a sketch, as that is all that can be given in less than 150 pages. It's not enough to convey all that I would like to know, but sufficient to give an impression of a remarkable man and his amazing journey through life.
The wisdom I most appreciate as I grow older is not found in the evolving of great thoughts and mind-expanding innovation; it's found in the expression of kindness, of the compassionate heart that brings new life into a deadened world by offering a space where the other person can become him- or herself. This wisdom is in its essence so simple, so basic, that we can easily overlook and dismiss it, as we do the "simple" folk who walk unseen in our midst. But at times there appears a person who becomes its representative in such a way that we can clearly perceive its healing power.
Such a man, as this book convincingly portrays him, was Jean Vanier. Even if we are not among the thousands who were directly affected by his work, who experienced him face-to-face, we can be glad to know that such a person existed, and try to learn from his example.
July 27, 2019
Jean Vanier: Portrait of a Free Man is a well-written biography. I was overwhelmed at times by the unfamiliar people and places in his life. Also, my lack of knowledge of theologians and their beliefs put me at a disadvantage.
He has done great good in his life helping people with physical and mental disabilities. I wish we could apply his thinking and methods to our growing homeless populations. When I entered a giveaway hoping to win a copy of this book, I had anticipated learning more about the challenges he faced with those he helped. I would like to know more about how he learned to deal with situations that arose. I guess that needs to be the topic for another book.
(p.78) " Jean Vanier listens-several hours each day, bent a bit forward, absolutely attentive, completely absorbed by what is being said as well as what is left unsaid. He inspires trust in other people. In his presence, people let down their masks and speak the truth. . . . He speaks but little, and the few words he does speak reach the heart of the person he's with."
(p. 79) "The hours of attentive and patient listening have continued to sharpen this gift-this ability to hear the cry of those who are rejected and without a voice, the life of deep pain of so many people, the aspirations of his own heart, and the tenderness of Jesus, who is his source of inspiration.
(p.86) ". . . Jean's way of thinking, . . . weaves three different threads together: the Gospels, people's stories, and the light shed on them by philosophy, psychology, and the other social sciences."
(p. 124) This page describes La Forestiere's methods which create an atmosphere of peaceful and limitless time, tenderness, and respect.
He has done great good in his life helping people with physical and mental disabilities. I wish we could apply his thinking and methods to our growing homeless populations. When I entered a giveaway hoping to win a copy of this book, I had anticipated learning more about the challenges he faced with those he helped. I would like to know more about how he learned to deal with situations that arose. I guess that needs to be the topic for another book.
(p.78) " Jean Vanier listens-several hours each day, bent a bit forward, absolutely attentive, completely absorbed by what is being said as well as what is left unsaid. He inspires trust in other people. In his presence, people let down their masks and speak the truth. . . . He speaks but little, and the few words he does speak reach the heart of the person he's with."
(p. 79) "The hours of attentive and patient listening have continued to sharpen this gift-this ability to hear the cry of those who are rejected and without a voice, the life of deep pain of so many people, the aspirations of his own heart, and the tenderness of Jesus, who is his source of inspiration.
(p.86) ". . . Jean's way of thinking, . . . weaves three different threads together: the Gospels, people's stories, and the light shed on them by philosophy, psychology, and the other social sciences."
(p. 124) This page describes La Forestiere's methods which create an atmosphere of peaceful and limitless time, tenderness, and respect.
July 22, 2019
Jean Vanier was a free man indeed: Free of attachment to material things and the world's definition of financial success. Free of the expectation of others-including family-in how he should live his life. Vanier, from a politically powerful family and trained for a naval career (he danced with Princess Margaret), set out on a pilgrimage of French villages and life in primative huts to find his calling and place in life. He responded to society's cruel rejection of the mentally unstable and afflicted to open initially a simple and bare-bones little house for himself and a handful of persons shunned and feared by society. This small seed-bed of compassion and caring grew to an international community of houses for the victims of mental illness. His quiet yet radical response to call and cause has drawn workers to the international L'Arche movement, and has captured the attention of world governments and leaders (including an initially perplexed Pope John Paul II, who years later in his own physical pain would respond knowingly to Vanier). Reading this biography, now in the days after his death in May, I felt amazement and shame. Shame as a caretaker of my own 95 year old mother; even as I read these pages I fought the irritation and frustration one can feel caring for the sick. Amazement that such a being as Jean Vanier lived in our time, when the stranger and the oppresssed are rejected at borders or grudgingly held in deplorable conditions by the powerful, and when walls and not outreach are seen as a solution to our differences. (See page 134 on Jean's view of barriers and walls.) In this time when power and celebrity scream for our attention, this little book about this simple man reminds us that true power does not fit the world's definition, and that in our time a man sought his true purpose and vocation to the benefit of many. Thank you Plough publishers for my copy.
July 20, 2019
Fascinating and inspirational life.
June 21, 2019
Before I started reading this biography I knew nothing about either Jean Vanier or the L'Arche Community, which Jean founded. I love reading about interesting people and I learning something new about the world, so the information posted about this book got my attention; the book kept it. The author wrote in a very conversational way I found engaging. As for Vanier, it was clear from an early age - - 12 - - when he decided to leave his Catholic Canadian family to attend a Protestant Naval Academy in England, that he was searching for his true purpose and special pathway in life.
Starting with his naval training and continuing throughout his life, Varnier's spiritual pathway involved the intertwining of three elements; a desire for prayer, an attraction to the poor, and a hunger for community. Born into a family of privilege, Vanier stays rooted in the family's strong foundation of faith, but turns away from a life of ease to help people with developmental disabilities.
I highly recommend this book. I thank Plough Publishing and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book and write my honest review..
Starting with his naval training and continuing throughout his life, Varnier's spiritual pathway involved the intertwining of three elements; a desire for prayer, an attraction to the poor, and a hunger for community. Born into a family of privilege, Vanier stays rooted in the family's strong foundation of faith, but turns away from a life of ease to help people with developmental disabilities.
I highly recommend this book. I thank Plough Publishing and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book and write my honest review..
June 5, 2019
I have known about the L'Arche communities for some time, but only the most basic knowledge. I knew nothing about the founder, Jean Vanier.
This book is a gem in giving one a look at who Jean Vanier is (was,) how his life formed him to become the man he was and how he allowed God the freedom to work in him and lead him. Having finished the book I regret I never met this man.
Reading his words brought me to tears at times. The author provided a glimpse of a truly special human being, who even now, can make you feel worthwhile and loved, even though you never knew him. His accomplishments provided so much for so many. A life well lived. A good and faithful servant.
Thank you Netgalley for this wonderful read!
This book is a gem in giving one a look at who Jean Vanier is (was,) how his life formed him to become the man he was and how he allowed God the freedom to work in him and lead him. Having finished the book I regret I never met this man.
Reading his words brought me to tears at times. The author provided a glimpse of a truly special human being, who even now, can make you feel worthwhile and loved, even though you never knew him. His accomplishments provided so much for so many. A life well lived. A good and faithful servant.
Thank you Netgalley for this wonderful read!
May 12, 2019
I got this as a arc e book from Net Galley for my i pad. I enjoyed reading it. It is about the founder of the L'arche community. This was a group home setting for mentally handicap or intellectual disabled people. My parish priest at the catholic church I attend took a year off as a priest and worked at one of these communities in Ontario. He mentions it sometimes in his Homilies at mass that it was a rewarding experience for him. I was glad to get this book from Net Galley to find out more about Jean Vanier.
May 19, 2019
5* star because I knew little about Jean Vanier and this book helped me to understand him and what he did.
A book for of food for thought.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.
A book for of food for thought.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.
November 5, 2019
I received a free copy of this book from LibraryThing Early Reviewers in exchange for an honest review.
This is a wonderful, short biography of a man who I believe to be one of Canada's national treasures, the late Jean Vanier. I have to admit that, apart from being the founder of L'Arche, there was very little that I knew about Vanier's life. Although this is what he is rightly remembered fondly for, this book showed that there was so much more to him. The author has given us a quite condensed account of his life, but there's also enough detail to cover the basics and important parts of a life that was filled with so much. What struck me the most, among other things, is that Vanier chose to live the life he lived, when he could so easily have chosen to live a life of comfort and privilege. He was indeed an inspiration.
This biography is worth checking out and I heartily recommend it.
This is a wonderful, short biography of a man who I believe to be one of Canada's national treasures, the late Jean Vanier. I have to admit that, apart from being the founder of L'Arche, there was very little that I knew about Vanier's life. Although this is what he is rightly remembered fondly for, this book showed that there was so much more to him. The author has given us a quite condensed account of his life, but there's also enough detail to cover the basics and important parts of a life that was filled with so much. What struck me the most, among other things, is that Vanier chose to live the life he lived, when he could so easily have chosen to live a life of comfort and privilege. He was indeed an inspiration.
This biography is worth checking out and I heartily recommend it.
August 23, 2019
Reviews
I remember seeing a documentary on L’Arche years ago and being touched by
the feeling of love and compassion Jean Vanier had for each person. And I knew first hand that giving yourself; your time, your energy, and your emotions to a person with mental and physical limitations is not a easy path. Especially in a “me first” world where slowing down long enough to listen is a major effort. In Portrait of a Free Man his biographer shows us how Jean Vanier found his calling-not only help men and women with disabilities but to live his life with them, and start communities all over the world. I was sad to hear he passed away this year, there wasn’t much fanfare on the news but I know he heard God say “well done”.
I remember seeing a documentary on L’Arche years ago and being touched by
the feeling of love and compassion Jean Vanier had for each person. And I knew first hand that giving yourself; your time, your energy, and your emotions to a person with mental and physical limitations is not a easy path. Especially in a “me first” world where slowing down long enough to listen is a major effort. In Portrait of a Free Man his biographer shows us how Jean Vanier found his calling-not only help men and women with disabilities but to live his life with them, and start communities all over the world. I was sad to hear he passed away this year, there wasn’t much fanfare on the news but I know he heard God say “well done”.
November 20, 2020
I grabbed this because I was genuinely interested in Vanier's life, and what drove him to make such a radical change in the lives of those considered mentally disabled, and from there springboard into changing the lives of so many. For so long those considered different mentally were locked away. Vanier flipped the script and changed the lives of two men simply by offering something new to them - care and kindness. A powerful story of a unique man, who's simple decision eventually spread across five continents.
January 11, 2023
I had never heard of Jean Vanier before reading this book and found his story very inspirational. This book was a very easy read, even though I found the writing a bit bland at times and in need of some polishing. A quick google search brings up an entirely different portrait of this man and I would have liked some of these issues regarding his misconduct to be addressed in this book and I think they should be addressed if this book is ever revised. Overall, this book is a decent if incomplete look into this man's extraordinary life.
November 1, 2019
Fascinating, inspirating story about a man who dedicated his life to helping people with disabilities find community and room to grow. Well worth reading even if you don't know much about disability studies.
January 7, 2020
It seems like this guy did great things, but as at least one other reviewer mentioned, the writing wasn't outstanding. And in general, it was all a little so precious at times it made me cringe.
Sorry, Jock.
Sorry, Jock.
September 1, 2019
Amazing book about an amazing life. Convicting and inspiring.
September 16, 2019
Wonderful book full of love and wisdom.
October 20, 2019
AWESomE!
February 10, 2023
Had to quit reading after I learned about the stories of his spiritual and sexual impropriety. So, yeah, he was free all right, just not exactly in the way the subtitle says. Too bad, but it's too bad his Catholic church pushes celibacy. And then again, cancel culture, graceless and unforgiving, sucks. I may finish this sometime.
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