L’Arche after Vanier: ‘We’ve moved on from Jean’

Jean Vanier, the founder of L'Arche, is accused of abusing women for decades - even while many Catholics considered him a living saint. How does L'Arche move forward?

When Laura Giddings first shared the news of L’Arche founder Jean Vanier’s abuse with her community in Tacoma, Washington, she felt a mixture of embarrassment, anger, and resentment at having to be the bearer of such a painful message.

It was 2020, less than a year after Vanier’s death at the age of 90, and an independent inquiry commissioned by L’Arche …