"Charity is good, but it is not enough!" This is the message of Jean Vanier, founder of L'Arche and Faith and Light, as he celebrates his 90th birthday today.
"Sometimes those of us with more power, more money, more time, or more knowledge bend down to help those with less power, less knowledge, or less wealth. There is a movement from above to below. When people are generous, they remain in control. If you see someone fall on the street, you help them up. But then something happens," Jean Vanier continues. "Friendship."
Listening opens the door to something far more radical than charity: mutual transformation, mutual dignity. "As you listen to that person, you become their friend. Perhaps you discover they live in poverty and have little money. You are no longer simply generous—you are entering a relationship that will change your life. You no longer have control. You have become vulnerable; you have come to love that person..."
We celebrate Jean Vanier's birthday by remembering his revolutionary insight: in life, the true rule is human solidarity. More than ever, what the world needs today is a sharing of gifts. It needs community. In Vanier's words, "The strong need the weak just as much as the weak need the strong".
Source: L'Arche