A Taste of Death – Sept. 30, 2019

This week’s quotes come from Jean Vanier’s book Becoming Human. Vanier was a Canadian Catholic philosopher, theologian, and humanitarian. In 1964, he founded L’Arche, an international organization of communities spread over 37 countries, for people with developmental disabilities and those who assist them.

Eighteen years ago, I was required to read this book while living in an intentional community through the Discipleship Year Program, a ministry of the Festival Center in Washington, DC. Vanier compelled us to dig deeper into our understanding of belonging to the beloved community of God. His passionate devotion to connect us all, especially those on the margins of society, was a driving force for me to understand my call and place in the world.

–Jim Marsh, Jr.

“To be lonely is to feel unwanted and unloved, and therefore unloveable. Loneliness is a taste of death. No wonder some people who are desperately lonely lose themselves in mental illness or violence to forget the inner pain.”

―Jean Vanier, Becoming Human