By Matthew McCully – “I am deeply peaceful and trustful. I’m not sure what the future will be but God is good and whatever happens it will be the best. I am happy and give thanks for everything. My deepest love to each one of you.”-Jean Vanier
That was the final message from humanitarian Jean Vanier, who passed away on Tuesday, May 7. Founder of the internationally charity L’Arche, whose mission for over half a century has been to ‘make known the gifts of people with intellectual disabilities’, Vanier not only improved the living conditions of developmentally challenged people, he also travelled the world promoting dialogue among different religions and spreading a message of peace.
Among the many people Vanier inspired during his life is Townshipper Lynn Ross, who had the privilege of meeting the Catholic philosopher a number of times. “It was 1964 when I first met him. It was right at the beginning of his career.”
Vanier was one of two speakers at an event organized by the Canadian Theological Students’ Association in Montreal. See full story in the Friday, May 10 edition of The Record.
