Larch
L'Arche ( French for “Die Arche”) is a project for people with and without disabilities to live together. It was founded in 1964 by the Canadian Jean Vanier and the French Philippe Seux and Raphaël Simi, two men with an intellectual disability, in Trosly-Breuil , a village 80 km north of Paris. This first community of the Arche was accompanied by the Dominican Fr. Thomas Philippe. As an international association of the Arche communities, the Arche is an association of believers in the Catholic Church under canon law , as Arche Germany and Austria it is a state-registered association and, as L'Arche International, is a non-governmental organization . There are now 137 Ark communities in 36 countries on all five continents.
In the communities of the Arche people with and without intellectual disabilities live together. The ark has its origins in the Catholic tradition. Today, however, many communities are also at home in other Christian churches or see themselves as ecumenical. The interfaith communities in India have also been part of the federation for many years.
"L'Arche" has no relation to the community of the same name founded by Lanza del Vasto in southern France, Die Arche .
The ark in Germany
In Germany there are so far three communities: The Tecklenburg Arche between Münster and Osnabrück , the Ravensburg Arche near Lake Constance and the Landsberg Arche between Munich and Augsburg .
The ark in Austria
There are two Arche houses in Austria: The house in Gries am Brenner and in St. Jodok. Both are located in Tyrol and belong to the Arche Tirol association .
structure
As the communities grew, supraregional and finally international structures emerged. The International Federation of the Communities of the Ark is an association of all communities and is led by two international coordinators and the International Board. It is divided into nine zones worldwide. Each community acts and operates independently.
Charter and goals
The basic ideas of the ark were recorded in a charter. It arose out of the need to give the communities a cohesion and an identity. First it was written in a form tailored purely to the Christian faith , then, after the first communities in India had also emerged, it was brought into the present form. The spirituality in it continues to play an important role, but has now also been opened to other religions. This charter was finally adopted by the general assembly of the Federation in May 1993 in Cap Rouge, Québec , Canada .
The declared aim of the Ark is to be a sign of hope , loyalty , solidarity and reconciliation for the world.
Reports of sexual assault by a community clergyman were raised in a TV documentary.
literature
- Kathryn Spink: Jean Vanier and the Ark. The story of an extraordinary calling. The biography for the 80th birthday. Neufeld Verlag , Schwarzenfeld 2008, ISBN 978-3-937896-66-3 .
Web links
- www.arche-deutschland.de
- www.larche.org
- www.arche-helvetia.ch
- www.arche-tirol.at
- www.larchecapebreton.org
- larche.wz.cz