Sense of community in l'Arche and in the writings of Jean Vanier

Intentional communities are an extreme effort to create a sense of community and thus highlight the conditions necessary to realize such an aspiration. This article describes l'Arche communities and examines the writings of their founder, Jean Vanier, in an effort to determine what sense of community is as lived at l'Arche. It is suggested that the creation of a sense of community in the larger society demands conditions similar to those at l'Arche, but to a lesser degree.