Befriending the Stranger

Jean Vanier

Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2005 - Religion - 131 pages

In "Befriending the Stranger" Jean Vanier reflects on who we are and how we build our communities amidst all the violence and corruption of the world. In six meditative pieces based on Scripture, he opens up God's invitation to us today to create new places of belonging and sharing, of peace and kindness, where each person is loved and accepted. The renewal of the church and the unity of Jesus' followers will come, writes Vanier, as we serve and befriend the poor and unwanted of our societies, and as we learn to live with our own poverty and loneliness.

Originally given at a retreat for people who assist those with disabilities, Vanier's reflections are for all who seek to live out God's love.

Contents

• Jesus wept: 1
• DAY: 7
• DAY: 25
• To become a friend of the weak and of those: 34
• DAY THREE: 49
• DAY FOUR: 67
• DAY FIVE: 83
• DAY: 103
• The one who answers the: 118

Popular passages

Page viii - Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak comfortably unto her. And I will give her her vineyards from thence, and the valley of Achor for a door of hope : and she shall sing there, as in the days of her youth, and as in the day when she came up out of the land of Egypt.‎

About the author

Jean François Antoine Vanier was born in Geneva, Italy on September 10, 1928. He studied at the Royal Naval College and spent time with both the British Royal Navy and the Royal Canadian Navy. In 1945, after the liberation of Paris, he spent part of a military leave at the Gare d'Orsay in Paris helping the Canadian Red Cross receive survivors of concentration camps. He resigned his commission in 1950. He spent several years living in a contemplative community near Paris. He received a doctorate from the Catholic University of Paris in 1962. He taught philosophy for a time at the University of Toronto. He founded two worldwide organizations for people with developmental disabilities called L'Arche and Faith and Light. He wrote more than 30 books including An Ark for the Poor and Becoming Human. He received the Paul VI prize in 1997 and the Templeton Prize in 2015. He died from thyroid cancer on May 7, 2019 at the age of 90.

Bibliographic information

• Title: Befriending the Stranger
• Author: Jean Vanier
• Publisher: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2005
• ISBN: 0802831346, 9780802831347
• Length: 131 pages
• Subjects: Religion / Christian Living / General; Religion / Christian Living / Spiritual Growth; Religion / Spirituality