Set Sail…
Let us dream of a world where those who are far away from each other are united in
friendship, of a world where no one is isolated or put aside, where those who are helpless
are supported, and where those who suffer are comforted. Let us dream of a world where
everyone is part of a supportive community.
To make this dream to reality, one must move forward. The danger is to stay inward
looking. If we want to open up to others and to grow, we must set out and march together,
not only as a community, but as a province and also as a big international family. Let us
begin our pilgrimage towards the kingdom of God.
To live is to undertake the adventure to which God is calling us, despite all our
weaknesses, to be fruitful one towards the other. Our wisdom is to act with a view to the
future: to reach out beyond our communities, beyond the walls that divide this world:
religions, disabilities, races, social classes, sexual differences… To be open and fruitful to
others is to believe that God, is patiently with us.
In this booklet, we tried to the best of our ability to reflect the presentations, the discussions, the
atmosphere and the decisions made during the meeting. We thank those who supplied us with pictures
and testimonies.
This booklet constitute a memento for all of those who participated in the events described, and a
testimony of its wonders for all those who will read it.
More information on the General Assembly is available on the Faith and Light Web Site:
http://www.foietlumiere.org/site/510.html
The Internet version of this booklet is available at: http://foietlumiere.ca/sillage_e
To print this booklet, download the following Power Point version:
http://foietlumiere.ca/structure/souvenir_lourdes_e.ppt
International Assembly of Faith and Light
Lourdes, France
October 11 to 17, 2008
Lourdes 2008
The delegates of Faith and Light gathered
to elect those who were to take over the new
responsibility of the movement for the next
five years. This was a way to address a
feeling of uneasiness that began in Rome
(2002) and became more marked in Madrid
(2006).
Part of the reason for this feeling was the
decision of Jean Vanier and Marie-Hélène
Mathieu to retire as leaders of Faith and
Light and the recognition that the old
Constitution was no longer responding to the
needs of the movement which has expanded
in all the continents.
This is why, in July 2006, the General
Assembly in Madrid gave to a Task Force
(page 22) the mandate to develop a new
Constitution. Then we would choose a new
team to implement it.
“We are witnessing the second birth of
Faith and Light” said Marie-Hélène at the
end of the vote on the new Constitution.
This week, we took care of each other
during the different steps that lead us to a
renewal of our movement. Each day, a
theme related to change was developed.
“The small boat of Faith and Light once
started its journey, guided by the Spirit”
said father Guy. “May the same Spirit
continue to guide and inspire us as He has
since the pilgrimage in 1971”.
We asked the Spirit to accompany each
one of us in the choices that we had to
make this week.
It is obvious that changes of that
magnitude generate various feelings:
enthusiasm, fear, disorientation, and even
anguish.
The whole week, we discussed, shared, reflect on our
identity and mission in the context of pilgrims walking
toward a renewed life. Coming back to the essence of who
we are is a Faith process, directed toward the mission of
today and tomorrow according to the spirit of the founders.
2
Provisional Provinces
During the Assembly, the country representatives discussed the possibility of regrouping
countries in provinces according to the new Constitution. The list below represents a
possible configuration. Names in bold are provisional. In the coming two years, the
General Assembly of each province will have the chance to discuss and validate these
new configurations.
AFRICA CAPRICORN : South Africa, Zimbabwe,
FRANCE NORTH : France North
Botswana, Zambia, RDC Lubumbashi
FRANCE PARIS : Paris & le Levant
AFRICA GREAT LAKE : Rwanda, Burundi,
FRANCE RHONE AZUR : France Rhône Azur
RDC Kivu, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania
FRANCE WEST : France West
AFRICA NOT REGROUPED : Cameroon, Nigeria,
GERMAN COUNTRIES : Netherlands, Luxembourg,
Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso, Sierra Leone
Germany, Austria
ASIA EAST : South Korea, Hong Kong, Japan, Taiwan
INDIAN OCEAN : Madagascar, Reunion Island,
ASIA SOUTH EAST : Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore,
Mauritius Island, Seychelles Island, Rodriguez Island
Bangladesh, Pakistan
IRELAND : Ireland
ENGLAND NORTH: England North, Scotland
ITALY CENTRE : Italy (Center part), Greece, Cyprus
ENGLAND SOUTH : England South, Wales
ITALIE NORTH : Italy (South part), Switzerland, Croatia
BETWEEN THE SEAS : Ukraine, Slovakia, Russia,
ITALIE SOUTH : Italy (South part), Palestine
Georgia, Czech Republic, Lithuania
LEBANON NORTH : Lebanon North, Iran, Armenia
BELGIUM : Belgium
LEBANON SOUTH : Lebanon South, Jordan
BRAZIL CENTRAL : Central Brazil
POLAND CENTER EAST : Poland Center East
BRAZIL NORTH EAST : North East Brazil
POLAND NORTH : Poland North
BRAZIL SOUTH: South Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay
POLAND WEST : Poland West
CANADA EAST : Canada East, Martinique, Haiti
POLAND SOUTH : Poland south
CANADA WEST : Canada West
PORTUGAL : Portugal
CENTRAL AMERICA : Mexico, Honduras,
SCANDINAVIA : Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Estonia
Dominican Republic
SLOVÉNIA : Slovenia
DANUBE : Hungary, Romania (Hungarian),
SPAIN NORTH : Spain (North part)
Romania (Romanian), Serbia
SPAIN SOUTH : Spain (South part), Gibraltar
EGYPT NORTH : Egypt North, Sudan
SOUTH AMERICA ANDES : Peru, Equator,
EGYPTE SOUTH : Egypt south
Columbia, Chile
FRANCE BETWEEN TWO SEAS : France Between Two Seas
SOUTHERN CROSS : Australia, Nouvelle-Zealand
FRANCE CENTRE : France Centre
SYRIA : Syria, Kuwait
FRANCE EAST : France East
UNITED STATES EAST : Untied States East
FRANCE ÎLE DE FRANCE: Ile de France West
UNITED STATES WEST : Untied States West
FRANCE LOIRE RHÔNE AUVERGNE :
France Loire Rhône Auvergne
31
The New Structure
The table below illustrates the elements of the structure at each of the three circles of
responsibility. There is no change at the community level. In this new structure, the
Provincial Teams become an important source of life to support communities. Vicecoordinators take care and respond to the needs of provinces or communities.
Provinces
Communities
The Coordinators’ Council meets approximately every 2.5 years and constitutes a
place of mutual support for provincial coordinators.
Community
Coordination Team
The members of the
community
Coordinator and
members of the team
Assembly
Provincial Team
Provincial Coordinator,
Chaplain, Treasurer and a
delegation from each
community
Coordinator, Chaplain,
Treasurer
and Vice-coordinators
It is difficult,
almost
impossible, to
describe the
presence of
the Holy Spirit
though it was
so visible and
palpable
It could not only be seen in the shining faces and in the burning hearts of the participants but it could also
be felt in the union and deep solidarity of this large crowd, made up of so many languages, races and
cultures. In all, almost 175 delegates from all aver the world.
Everything has been planned in detail,
with attention to the heart: beautiful
decoration
everywhere
with
the
emblem of Faith and Light, dossiers full
of documents, a map with a pretty
wooden cross to bid us welcome was
awaiting us in our rooms, a non-stop
simultaneous
translation
(French,
English and Spanish) and, scattered
throughout the conference room, word
of mouth translations in Polish, Korean,
Japanese and Arabic.
Father Hans Putman s.j.
International
Coordination Team
Assembly
Board of Directors
Members of the Board
of Directors,
International Vicecoordinators and a
delegation from each
province
President, Vice-president,
International Coordinator,
Treasurer, International
Chaplain and 2 qualified
members
International Coordinator,
International Chaplain,
International Vice-coordinators
Coordinators’ Council
Coordination Team and
Provincial Coordinators
30
The visual was progressively built during the week.
On the right, Loïc and Thaddée
3
Marie-Hélène Mathieu
Crossing to the Other Side
2011 2011 2011 2011 2011
Extracts from her conference
We are at a turning point. We are leaving
the old Constitution and its security in order to
proceed with a new structure. It is normal for us
to be afraid of the unknown, to have regrets
about the deep friendships woven into the
councils that have disappeared. A great step
because, since the adoption of our first
Constitution in 1982, it has been subject to
modifications at each General Assembly. But
here, it could almost be called a re-foundation. Is
this a radical upheaval for the movement? I say
no. Because the Constitution, the structures as
has been said, is an instrument for the service of
the spirit. It is a bit like the essential skeleton
that supports the flesh and the muscles worked
by the spirit. All the Constitution, all our
structures, from the bottom to the top, have the
disabled person as a purpose and, around them,
the community, but it hasn’t always been so. The
greatest upheaval in our history happened in
1979.
I remember at the end of the first
pilgrimage, the 350 community leaders had
unanimously requested that Faith and Light
carried on. Jean Vanier told them: "Continue to
meet and do what the Holy Spirit inspires you to
do.” Up until 1979, each person was left a little
to his or her own instigation. I remember great
festivals in Belgium that brought together not
the communities but 2000 to 3000 people.
In Peru, FAITH AND LIGHT was carried on by
creating a school for disabled children. However,
we had an international meeting each year, we
shared all our experiences and we became more
and more aware that the main thing was the
community. The community needed not only a
leader but also a coordination team. In Belgium, in
1979, we created an International Council and
thus, 3 continent coordinators were nominated,
Europe North (Teresa), Europe South (MarieAngela) and America North (Betty Renaud).
At this time, we decided to lay the foundations of a
constitution, grounds that were even agreed here
in Lourdes on October 26, 1980. Then there was a
lot of to-ing and fro-ing between the zones,
countries and the international level and, in 1982,
we ended up with a Charter and Constitution voted
for at the Wetherby International Meeting. When
we began to discuss the constitution, many feared
that it would sterilise the movement and sap
inspiration. There was a lot of reticence and
resistance. “Why change when it has always been
done like this and Faith and Light is thriving?” We
rapidly realized that the Constitution made it
possible to keep unity throughout the world,
facilitating leader discernment by having a head,
shoulders, heart and spirit. We were already all
persuaded. If good structures are necessary, the
richness is in the men and women who use them.
Today, it is necessary for us to have great trust.
The Holy Spirit supports us more than ever with a
quite specific affection and concern because we
have put our hand in the hand of the smallest who
are the chosen ones of his heart. Each one of us
also knows very well that the first commitment,
above that of being leader, is that of being a
member of our own community, with a particular
closeness to any one of our brothers and sisters.
During the last day of the meeting, the participants, regrouped in 22 sub-groups and
brainstormed. They were asked to react to three questions: 1o A three steps scenario for a
pilgrimage, that is starting with an inter community activity, followed by something at the provincial
or inter provincial level, and finally an international activity, 2o The objectives of this activity, 3o The
organisation. In the coming months, the Board of Directors and the International Coordination
Team will develop a project taking into account the results of the brainstorming.
Here is the result of their discussion:
 A three step Scenario
 The objectives
Several groups expressed their agreement
with the three step process. Some emphasised
that this approach would create more awareness
in several areas around the world. It was
mentioned that a provincial or inter provincial
pilgrimage would go against an international one
because of the accumulation of costs. A few
times, it was suggested for various reasons, to
avoid an international pilgrimage during Easter
time. The ecumenical dimension was also
mentioned as well as an equal representation of
participating countries.
A pilgrimage to Lourdes was mentioned
by a majority of groups. Some indicated that a
big event offers more possibilities to rally people
and is important to generate visibility. They also
said that other places could be less costly than
Lourdes. Some mentioned Lourdes but indicated
that the financial dimension is important in the
choosing of the place. The optimal size of the
gathering was mentioned a few time, but there
was no consensus.
To announce and to celebrate our identity
and mission. To be visible; this is why it is
important that all communities participate in a
common approach. To celebrate the 40th
anniversary of Faith and Light and the
international dimension. Celebrate the history
and live the tradition.
 The means
Several suggestions were made: Constitute
a team; fund raising campaign; establish a
partnership with l’Arche; ask support from people
from outside; insure solidarity, etc.. Several
people simply asked the question: “How can this
work?”
Assizes
4
Lourdes
Our Lady of
Guadeloupe
29
Priorities for the new team
On Tuesday morning, participants worked in small groups in order to identify the priorities to
be given to the new International Team for the next 5 years. Here is the result of their
discussion:
Global Strategies
Who does what ?
1. Continue and improve the identity and
mission process.
2. Unity and diversity: inclusion,
ecumenism, cultural, national, linguistic
and religious identities.
3. Being open and committed in the
world as it is. Say who we are, and what
our gifts are.
1. Outline the respective responsibilities of the
international level, provinces and communities.
2. Finances, vision and strategies to ensure the
movement is visible.
3. Solidarity: financial aid, developing links
between provinces in order to support the most
fragile ones.
Methods
1. Adjusting structures and transitions.
2. Training and accompaniment of coordinators, chaplains.
Spiritual resources.
3. Internal communication.
4. External communication.
Our Journey since July 2006
July 2006
■ Mandate given to the Task Force
October 2006
■ First meeting of the Task Force
Diagnostic and governance principles. Decision
to propose a discernment process on identity and mission.
March 2007
■ Meeting of the Task Force with the International Council
Decision to propose to Zone Councils a discernment process on Identity and Mission.
Decision that this process will continue after October 2008.
Decision to call the General Assembly in October 2008.
October 2007
■ The International Council studies the first draft of the Constitution
January 2008
■ The second draft is sent to the International Council together with
a multi media presentation for continental consultation.
February 2008
■ Feedback
The comments from the continents are included
in the new version.
End of March 2008
■ Draft #3 is distributed to
zones and continents
April – May 2008
■ Feedback
The comments from zones and continents
are included in a new version.
July 2008
■ Distribution of draft #4 and invitation letter to the General Assembly
The new International Coordination Team: Tim and Maria-Cecilia Buckley (USA), Marie-Rose
Lefrère (France), Elaine Swain (New Zeeland), Lucia Casella (Italy), Mirna Hayek (Syria), Darius
Chmielauskas (Lithuania), Yves-Bertin Hirwa (Rwanda), Ghislain Duchêné (France). Not on the
picture: Hervé et Anne Cuche (Belgium) and Joanna Kozczot (Poland).
28
5
Sharing Cafe
The Discernment
During the election process, Chantal
helped the large group in a spiritual
conversation to decipher the will of the Spirit.
A spiritual conversation involves
communicating from our center, in a way that
is unique and true to our inner selves,
speaking of our most profound desires, those
which give us our energy for life. It is at this
level that God speaks to us and gives us life.
This spiritual conversation is rooted in faith; it
is humble, poor, open, wishing to welcome and
to share, to receive and to give, to love and be
loved.
Through sharing and our personal prayer, and
by listening attentively to others, we experience
more deeply the paths of the Holy Spirit, how
the Spirit is manifest and working within our
lives, where the Spirit is leading us in order
that we become one body.
 Sharing Groups
During the week, in small sharing group, each one of us was able to listen and to express
himself/herself: We tried to have an attitude of respectful listening and being attentive to our own
experience. Time of silence were appropriate and necessary. These sharing groups were not a
place to debate or to try to convince others and impose our own ideas, solve problems or save
others. Each one, in turn, was sharing what he/she was able to, not more, not less.
6
27
The Elections
The discernment according to the Spirit is what makes the
election special in Faith and Light: The objective is not to win.
The vote is part of a process in which we try to discover what
is necessary for the common good. It is not a competition
between groups (who propose their candidate), but rather a
real care for the concerns and hopes of all members of the
international family. As a consequence, the result is a
decision of the large community, and everyone is called to
confirm it. We pray to be guided by the Spirit and we are
responsible for those we elect.
Ghislain Du Chêné
Photos
Corinne gathering the votes
Henri Major
From left to right: Louis de
Voguë
(France),
treasurer,
Father Guy Vanhommissen s.j.
Chaplain (Belgium) (not elected),
Yves-Bertin Hirwa (Rwanda),
qualified member, Claude Gravel
and
Denise
Audet-Gravel
(Canada)
qualified members
(Denise is not on the picture),
Henri Major (Canada) President
of the Board of Directors,
Ghislain du Chéné (France)
International
Coordi-nator,
Corinne
Châtain
(France)
general secretary (not elected),
and Roland Tamraz (Lebanon)
Vice-President.
The evening after the elections was an explosion
of joy because these elections had gone ahead
with the grace of the Spirit, without any mundane
competition, but in an atmosphere of trust and
availability for this extraordinary service.
Traditional costumes full of the colours of South
America, Eastern Europe, various African
countries and the Middle East… Joséphine, the
Sudan coordinator, looked like a princess,
admired by all. Me, I was dressed in a sort of
Sjiluk embroidered toga.
After this very special explosion of joy we got
together for a group photo. This was when Jean
Vanier put in an appearance, arriving quite tired
from an international Arche meeting in Calcutta
(India). His giant stature bowed, but his face was
radiating joy and kindness. At the evening meal,
his 80th birthday was celebrated with a large
cake.
In the words he spoke to the Assembly and
which flowed enlightened and clear from their
source, Jean said: “Faith and Light was born in
Lourdes, a place of great suffering, but also of
great compassion. The blessed and weakened
humanity has become there the source of a
deep joy … a joy which originates in Jesus and
his Good News: ‘As severe as your disability
may be, you are unique and precious in the
eyes of God and for others. Each woman, each
man is important and it is a sign of the love of
God’.”
With this message, the delegates
returned to their various countries and set to
work to proclaim this good news, helped by the
new Constitution and the new leaders. With a
deep trust, we entrust our ‘brothers’ and
‘sisters’ to the benevolent and effective care of
all who read this testimony.
Father Hans Putman
The new Board of Directors
26
7
Marie-Hélène Mathieu
Like Bernadette...
The Community, a place of...
Extracts from her conference
Extracts from his conference
First and foremost, as we listen to Marie-Hélène Mathieu , we are struck by
how much she is oozing with youth and strength. She continues to
amaze us with her energy, her flood of words, her exceptional memory!
We would like to thank her for having taken us back
through the history of Faith and Light and for having helped us to draw new
strength from the story of the life of Bernadette.
Bernadette is well placed to guide us at this ‘turning point’ and with her, we are
brought back to our roots. Bernadette’s life is reflected in
many ways in the lives of disabled
People:

Like Bernadette, they find themselves in a
situation of weakness, like her, more often than
not, they do not know how to read or write.

Like Bernadette, to grow they need an
expression of trust, tailor-made missions.

Like Bernadette, weak people often have a true
word that can surprise and sometimes
disconcert.

Like Bernadette, weak people are attracted by
this God who loves them. Their trust in Him is
natural.

The weak people of our communities, like
Bernadette, often have a thirst to receive the
Eucharist and show their joy when they
prepare for their first communion.
8
Jean Vanier
Healing That healing began here in
Lourdes. As we started to form communities, the
parents discovered other parents, people with
disabilities discovered friends; there was a healing
of hearts. That healing has to continue, because for
many parents and for many people with disabilities,
they have broken hearts, they have never really
been helped to discover what is the meaning to
their life. This is not just to be kind to people with
disabilities, it is to help them discover a meaning to
their life, because in some mysterious way, they
can be, and are, an instrument of Jesus.
Growth Community is a place where we
all are called to grow. In community, there are some
persons you really like and others make you climb
the
walls.
Some
people
assume
their
responsibilities and others don’t. Some parents are
just happy to leave their son or daughter there and
run away. It is one thing to build community,
another to discover in me, my difficulties in
relationship. I need help. I need Jesus. People with
disabilities, who have been in Faith and Light for
many years, have frequently developed a lot of
maturity, growth, understanding. What it means to
be human and what it means to be a disciple of
Jesus. Faith and Light communities are places of
growth toward greater maturity.
Celebration The Eucharist, as the
Washing of the Feet, are places where we are
called to become one. Celebration is also all the
celebrations of having fun together: singing,
laughing, dancing, being one together, the mimes,
the dramas... To celebrate life because we are
loved by God, and we are called to be together and
therefore to sing our thanksgiving. To be a people
of celebration in the celebration in the world where
there is a lot of depression and a lot of pain, a lot of
anger and a lot of crisis.
Mission
Mission in the church,
mission in the world. We have something to tell
the world. About love, about people with
disabilities, about our values. To help people with
disabilities to grow and to reveal their value, their
beauty, their mission, their gifts.
But above all, to witness the relationship to
the different, relationship to the weak, relationship
which becomes healing. They heal us about our
fears, our prejudices and they bring us to the point
of our own vulnerability.
Faith and Light is not just to help parents, is
not just to help people with disabilities, but it is
also to help people in our world to discover the
gifts of people with disabilities. How we are
transformed by people with disabilities.
We have the mission of walking together,
Christians from different Churches: the beauty
that we can bring to each other. We discovered
that we were called to be ecumenical and today,
and through what is happening in Jordania and in
Syria, we are called to grow with Muslim people.
We also have the mission to support each
other at the international level. We need each
other from different countries. We are a big family,
a family in front of globalisation which is governed
by development and money. We can discover
another type of unity: the compassion, the love,
the struggling for the poor, so that those with
disabilities are not pushed aside, but somewhere
they are seen as indispensable to our churches
and societies.
25
Marie-Hélène Mathieu
Lourdes, the Fertile Ground
We washed each others feet in sharing groups. We celebrated a Coptic Mass.
We rejoiced during an African evening. We took part in an Anglican Eucharist.
Extracts from her conference

A place of Christian unity
At first glance, Lourdes does not seem to be ideal as an
ecumenical place. However, it has become a strong place of
Christian unity. From the 1st pilgrimage, about sixty
Protestant and Anglican pilgrims took part in the move
Later, when the communities were developed, Protestant
and Anglican communities arose in England, Scotland and
South Africa and then, after the fall of the Wall, Orthodox
communities were born.
From 1981, international
pilgrimages to Lourdes have been ecumenical.
 What Faith and Light has brought to Lourdes
Lourdes is the fertile ground where Faith and Light was born. However, there is a reciprocity of
gifts. From the 1971 pilgrimage, “a large wall crumbled that was not one of refusal but of
ignorance” stated a chaplain. Since then, intellectually disabled people have been fully welcomed
there. At the OCH, we have become aware of the loneliness of disabled people and their families
and we have created a reception service that allows for even better integration.
 Today
I marvel at all the different sounds we have been blessed with since arriving at Lourdes: folk
songs from all around the world at our welcome; a lion roaring and frogs croaking during Claude’s
presentation; intriguing accents in our working groups; people huffing and puffing as they scale the
incline once more; Scripture readings in Arabic and in Norwegian; searching questions in our
continental meetings; words of encouragement and support as we begin to open in our sharing
groups; the buzz of a roomful of animated conversations over dinner and a chorus of ‘Happy
Birthday’; We gather together as friends and as family in the midst of all these beautiful and diverse
sounds. These are sounds that remind me of the richness and the fullness of life that God blesses
us all with through the miracle of Faith and Light… Bring on the orchestra!
Rév. Tim Dobbin
24
Today, Lourdes celebrates 150 years of the apparitions and is expecting approximately ten million
people this year. Faith and Light quite modestly celebrates its 37 years or its 40 if you count the
anniversary of its conception. The first letter found in the archives of the Sanctuaries, dated May
17, 1968, was signed by Jean Vanier and addressed to the Superior of Bétharram to ask him how
to contact Mgr Théas, the then Bishop of Tarbes and Lourdes to put to him the idea of a pilgrimage
project for the intellectually disabled. This 150 year jubilee of Lourdes has somewhat inspired us. If
it is a process of thanksgiving, it is especially, said Mgr Perrier, “A great sending on a mission for a
new integration” particularly for disabled people.
9
Jim Corkery s.j.
Identity and Mission
The new Constitution
Extracts from his conference
Here are a few elements of the new Constitution adopted by the Assembly:
What is your identity and mission in this world that needs
Faith and Light? To answer this question, it is necessary to
look back to the fundamentals; to look out at the challenges
and the possibilities; and to look forward to some directions
you would hope to move in, in the future.

1- The Fundamentals
Do you not find your identity in the call of
God and in companionship with those others who
share this call? You have an identity – fashioned
through the call of God in tandem with
providential persons in your lives: persons with
disability, families, friends. Call and commitment
are a gift and a grace. In that sense, identity
comes from outside: think of the many stories of
‘call’ by Jesus that are shown to us in the
Gospels. Jesus is God’s involvement in our lives
and world – and from his involvement we receive
an identity that discloses to us who God is, and
who we are. From this disclosure, then, a visible
or outside identity begins to take shape; and this
others, like me, can see.
What do I see? I see how you meet and
come to know God. You have a unique way of
seeing God and the world. You find God in those
whom the world ignores, overlooks, pushes aside,
never consults. You find God in the brokenness
and pain of others, and in your own pain and
brokenness.
Here, then, is witness – and prophecy: the
counter-cultural insight that being in control, and
having power, and stooping to be generous from
a position of strength are neither the Godly nor
the truly human way.
It is only when we enter into conversation,
dialogue, relationship with those whom we are
privileged to help that we become vulnerable too,
because we are starting to love. Such love is the
way; we need it and the world needs it; and, as
Faith and Light shows, it is received freely from
those who have nothing to lose but who in fact
have what the rest of us could have lost: hearts
full of love. This paradox is at the heart of your
identity too: that from those to whose pain you
reach out you receive far more than you could
ever give.
All that belongs to the identity you have and
manifest: so have confidence in it, even if few
seem to notice it. It is a humble, from-inside-out
kind of approach, Jesus’ way, not very effective
apparently (look at his life!) and not often noticed
in a world obsessed with profits, successes,
congratulatory evaluations, lucrative results, and
so on.
The question then is: how can this identity
have an impact today and how can the mission
foster deeper commitment and attract new
members? This is not so easy to answer
because the social and cultural circumstances of
many parts of our present world place challenges
in the pathway of Faith and Light, as well as, of
course offering it possibilities of a novel kind
also.
Thank you Father Jim for your speech. It really moved me. I have taken some of your sentences which struck
a chord with me and represent a new light. “You all shine like stars because you have heard the Word of
God.” “Like a blind child touches a face, feeling it to recognise it, we do the same at Faith and Light to find
God through people with disabilities.”
Corinne
10
 A structure with three circles of responsibility
 The community. The new constitution does not foresee changes for communities
The province. The entity province regroups an average of thirty communities from
the same country or from different countries.
 The International

 Three functions
 At every circle of responsibility Assemblies represent the members


A coordination team at every circle of responsibility to accompany and give life
A board of directors at the international level to provide direction to the movement
 Vice-Provincial coordinators
Their role is to accompany. More flexibility.
Not necessarily associated with a geographic territory.
 The choice of persons who take over a responsibility
A better frame of reference to choose the persons who will take over responsibility.
Mechanism to improve the possibility of making the good choice and to correct bad
choices. The important place of discernment.
 The emphasis placed on Coordination Teams
Sharing of the task with a team. The role of Coordinators is to facilitate groups.
 More flexibility to local entities
The new Constitution is intentionally vague on several dimensions of Faith and Light.
The item #4 of the Constitution provides an interpretation grid.
The complete text of the new Constitution is available on Internet at the following
address:
http://www.foietlumiere.org/site/im_user/036charter_and_constitution.pdf
23
The Task Force
2- Challenges and Possibilities


In 2006, the General Assembly in Madrid gave to a Task Force the mandate to
review international governance and structures to allow Faith and Light to continue to
flourish as an International movement.
The Task Force was asked to review the experience of recent years, be attentive to
the signs of the times and signs of the Spirit. Regularly consult with and report to
members of the International Council (and through them to the countries and zones) on
a regular basis. Be open to new ways of functioning, while faithful to traditions. Explore
and communicate on advantages and disadvantages of the changes they might
propose. Communicate regularly with the international council on the questions raised
and to prepare a final proposal for the International Council.
The modern, ‘Western’ ideal of
freedom
Whatever the problem is about attracting
people to join and commit, for example, to Faith
and Light communities, it is not solved by losing
sight of the ideal. No; what enables me to go on,
to commit deeply, is the early inspiration reseen. This is all the more difficult in a world that
offers the possibility of many identities and that
discourages commitment of a lasting and
faithful kind. As Pope Benedict says: today we
view freedom as living without restrictions; and
we see relationships as restrictive, tying us
down; so we opt for an empty Bidungslosigkeit
(attachment closeness). The modern, ‘Western’
ideal of freedom does not foster the following of
any kind of vocations and commitments; we are
up against that.

A culture based on individuals
and their rights
There are other social and cultural elements,
too, that impede and obscure the attractiveness
of many Christian options, Faith and Light very
much included.
We have created in these a
culture based on individuals and their rights.
We acknowledge the basic rights of all to certain
‘goods’ – freedom of speech, freedom of
religion, etc. – but once we have done that, we
pay little attention to the social conditions
necessary for the acquiring of these rights – and
to the fact that the path to them is by no means
equal. Furthermore, because an individualistic
rights-focus is me-oriented, the culture
embodies a ‘logic’ of self-centricity, selfdirectedness.
A
Members of the Task Force: Maureen O’Reilly,
Claude Gravel, Olivier Le Gendre, JeanChristophe Pascal, Lucia Cassela

Here are some objectives that the Task Force tried to achieve:
 Develop a structure that will allow for proximity between those who carry the
responsibility and the members.
 Introduce more flexibility in the governance of the movement by reducing
the rules of functioning.
 Anchor in the new structure the capacity to develop more competency at all
sphere of activities of the movement, particularly in the area of leadership.
22
A supermarket of identities
There is a supermarket of identities
available, and anything like a firm or stable
‘self’ seems unattractive – in face of the
endless promises that the multiple identities
make to us. People can be one thing today,
another tomorrow. There is also an endless
stream of opinions on offer – even about life’s
more important moral questions – and the
impression is increasingly gained that nothing is
fixed, or true, or right – or even can be. Living in
that kind of world makes the asserting of any
kind of stable identity – and the attracting of
others to embrace it – well-nigh impossible. The
tide of the ‘world’ is simply flowing against us.
culture that does not foster
passion and zeal
There is another feature of modern life that
causes us to have to struggle extra hard too,
indeed to have to be openly counter-cultural and
resistant, on the one hand, while remaining
compassionate,
on
the
other.
Here is a challenge second to none: to resist a
cultural ‘flow’ that draws people into addiction
and compulsive behaviour, seeking experiences,
‘highs’, ‘trips’ of ecstasy out of the boring
everyday; and we must find the strength to do
this resisting with compassion. The culture
seeks to enslave; your Christian way of
vulnerability and love seeks to liberate. But it is
a liberation that is difficult to make enticing in
face of the many choices – apparent liberties –
offered to people today in a cultural space that
views freedom as unlimited choice, as the
absence of all restraint.
11
Jean Vanier
A world of Peace
Extracts from his conference

Global Context
Another current challenge to your mission
– but this is one that may also be an opportunity,
offering new possibilities – is the global and
increasingly interconnected context in which you
have to operate. Globalisation, technology and
the marvels of new forms of electronic
communication have brought to you both new
tasks and new responsibilities; at the same time
they have made it possible for you to be one –
even to know one another across continents –
better than ever before. But with all this have
come also not only ecumenical, but also
interreligious and racially diverse encounters –
and these, too, challenge you beyond your
traditional boundaries. This is by no means all
bad, but it certainly adds to the bewilderment of
the moment.
In the past, in the so-called period of
modernity, there was greater hostility to spiritual
things than there is now and less receptivity to
religious and prayerful visions of the world.
Openness to diversity was weaker; the ‘other’ –
the one politically, socially or culturally different
from me – was seen as a threat, and there is
more openness now – even if a struggle for
acceptance, love and inclusion of those who are
disabled continues.
12
I see that progress has been made in the
secular realm too to improve the lives of children
like this. The secular world is not always against
us; I’m not at all saying all is perfect here, but I
think the tilt of society is more enlightened than
used to be the case.
And that offers
encouragement, possibilities…..
You are a movement in the Church,
inspired by its faith and inserted into the life of its
parishes. Your visible presence is a witness to
your fellow-believers through how you cherish
your family members and friends with
disabilities. The Church is now a humbler, more
vulnerable, less arrogant, with the opportunity to
grow more in this direction and so to become
more like the vulnerable and broken Jesus,
visible so much in our brothers and sisters with
disabilities.
So, opportunity is gently knocking here too;
and perhaps we can attune ourselves better to
friendlier voices and more open minds.
Here we have a foundation for a world of peace. The revelation
that each person is important, that the person not only will seek
security in the group, but must go further and find security in the Holy
Spirit which is being given to him. It has taken a long time for
humanity to become conscious of the importance of each person.
It is really only in 1947 that we had the
declaration of the Human Rights where the
preamble says this: “The recognition of the
inherent dignity of all the members of the
human family and their equal rights
constitutes the foundation of liberty, justice
and peace in the world”. The recognition
that each person is important, that each
person has a value, that each person is the
presence of God. Somebody once asked
Martin Luther King, “Will it always be that,
in our world, one group thinks they are
better than other groups?” That one group
thinks that they can despise the others. Will
this always be like that?” And Martin Luther
King said: “Yes, unless we all discover,
recognize and accept what is broken in
each one of us”. What is broken in me. My
handicaps around fear, fear of relationship,
fear of losing one’s place. We, human
beings, are all vulnerable, we all have
disabilities; and we are called to become
weaker and more fragile.
This is a revolution, Jesus came to
bring a revolution, making a change from
the importance of the group – the group
remains important – to the importance of
the person: the person with disabilities, the
person who is fragile, and that person is
something very human and very divine.
The Challenges
That is why we have to learn in Faith and
Light that to be a true spirituality demands a
certain competence; and the questions today, in
2008, are very different to the questions in 1971.
Questions on sexuality and sterilisation,
questions of marriage, of living alone, of
autonomy. In the sixties, people with disabilities
were closed up. Now, through a number of
initiatives which are positive, there has been an
opening up. The creation of workshops, schools,
all sorts of support. Beautiful things, but that
makes us reflect on how this young man is going
to live his autonomy and his sexuality; it is not
easy. It is more complex for families and for their
children now who are finding a sort of freedom
from their families.
There is something in Faith and Light which
is profoundly spiritual; to discover the meaning,
the deep meaning of why Faith and Light was
called to be born here in Lourdes – as a gift of
God, a gift of Mary, a gift of compassion; a
compassion can never just remain spiritual.
21

 3- Moving Forward into the Future
Jesus tells us something new*
Jesus came to tell us something about
pain and about the place of people with
disabilities. When you read the Gospel
message, it is obvious that Jesus is in some
way attentive, attracted to people with
disabilities.
We know the beautiful text of the
wedding feast. Jesus says “When you give a
really good banquet, invite the poor, the
lame, the disabled, the blind and you shall
be blessed”. Very beautiful words: “You
shall be blessed!” You will be changed; you
will be entering the kingdom of love.
Blessed are you Father for having hidden
these things from the intelligent, the clever,
and revealed them to the little ones.
What Jesus reveals is becoming more
conscious today. Jesus has an incredible
vision for the world, something which is at
the heart of the Gospel: it is not a question
of doing good to the poor, but being healed
by the poor. That is something new.
He came to liberate me from my fears,
from my compulsions, and from the need to
be affirmed, and Jesus said that we refuse
the light because we don’t want to recognize
the darkness in us. This is an incredible
vision, and this is new.
So what appears so painful and terrible,
so shameful for so many mothers, when we
build community, that which was shameful
becomes something which changes me.
* Extracts from Jean Vanier’s talk
When I asked Jean if he had the time and
energy to visit us in Sudan next December, he
closed his eyes, saying: “The travelling is over!
I am now going to retire, praying and living in
my Trosly community”. And then he added,
looking at me: “But you all have charisma;
Faith and Light is going to continue”.
Père Hans Putman sj.
I am gently challenging you, us, not to
lose hope, not to lose confidence in your
mission that witnesses to the incarnation of our
compassionate God at the heart of the
brokenness of our world – our own brokenness
and the brokenness of all who make up our
communities. God is there. And we are called
to be detectives of his presence, tracers of his
grace, seekers of his face like my sight-disabled
godchild.
You are moving forward already with your
proposed renewal of both international
governance and structures. You are willing to
construct a future that is more simplified and
more adapted to the circumstances of
contemporary life.
An image comes to mind that you might
wish to do something with. It is of the Trinity –
and of the Reciprocity in equal Relationships
that characterises them. The phrase is one of
the five coming from the zones to spell out the
gift of Faith and Light. Reciprocity in equal
Relationships.
You aim at that in your
communities – for a Jesuit it is amazing that you
are all ‘brothers’ and ‘sisters’ and in no sense
‘leaders and led.’ No boss: communities of
mutual and equal relationships.
The image of the Trinity suggests itself
to me, then, as I read about you, and get to
know you. It lies at the very heart of who you
are. It’s not so far-fetched; look:
- Families/Parents – image of the Father,
creating, caring, providing, minding, leading.
- Persons with Disabilities – image of the Son,
broken, vulnerable, pushed aside, loving to the
depths and to the end
- Friends, especially young friends – image of
the Spirit, who brings life, youth, energy,
renewing and re-creating.
None of these acts alone. They are
turned towards each other in love. Their
dance is perfectly mutual and exhibits in each
an others-towardsness, a loving ‘enjoyment’ of
their reciprocal ‘in-flow’ and ‘out-flow’
eternally. A mystery beyond comprehension,
yet imaged in no small way by Faith and Light
communities of persons with disabilities, their
families and their friends – especially young
friends.
I have a daughter who is severely handicapped. Every
Sunday I used to take her to Mass with my family. One day,
a Jesuit priest on replacement told the parishioners after
mass “When such a child comes to a parish, this is a
blessing. Such a child brings God wherever she goes!” Since
then, I have come along with my daughter to various
meetings, services because I finally understood which
mission God has given her.
Yasuhiro Hattori, Japan
20
13
Claude Gravel
Identity and Mission: The Unique gift of Faith and Light

Welcoming people in pain
Extracts from his conference
Question #1 asked to Zone Councils
« What is the unique gift of Faith and Light today? »
This question was intended to bring out the essence of Faith and Light. What is at its root
and what is essential and fosters life?
Following their discernment, the Zone Councils shared with us the following:

Reciprocity in equal relationships
The central role of the person with an intellectual disability. Humility, fragility, simplicity, dignity.
Fruitful fragility which transforms. Equal relationships; learning from each other, breaking down
barriers. The weak confounding the wise. Vulnerability which helps us to discover our own
vulnerabilities.

Belonging and commitment to a community
Welcome, warmth, being accepted, having a place. Being welcomed with their gifts into the
community. Beauty of everyone’s gift. Being accepted despite difference, as we are, without
conditions. Suffering which can be expressed, shared. Solidarity, lasting friendship, fidelity.
Support that allows the overcoming of rejection, blame and culpability.

Authenticity, transparency
Truth in relationships which brings joy. Spontaneity, Truth, Sincerity, Celebration, Life. Agent of
peace and unity.

Gradually over the years we
discovered that Faith and Light is not just a
place of celebration, but a place of
community. We are very different from
communities that are there to evangelize.
We are communities to welcome people in
pain.
Parents don’t want to have a child
with disabilities. Once they have the child
with disabilities, they frequently don’t
know what to do. None of us wants pain.
There is a fundamental thing in our heart:
we want to reject pain, we want to be well.
The reality of pain is something we don’t
want.
To welcome a child is to welcome Jesus. Jesus in
the Eucharist, and Jesus in the wounded person.
In all our churches we must bring this mystery
together, the real presence of Jesus in the poor,
the broken, the disabled, rejected, in prison,
naked, stranger, sick. Whatever you have done to
the least of my brethren, you have done to me.
The real presence of Jesus in the broken, the real
presence of Jesus in the Eucharist. We have to
learn to bring things together. And then, what
was horrible, what was fearful, what was a source
of pain, things begin to change.
It is all about suffering. How to stand in front of
suffering? Not to treat it glibly, not to spiritualize
it; suffering is a very physical human reality and it
demands competence to know how to be in front
of it, and demands a spirituality, to remain
present, to be present to pain.
Why do people not want to recognize that people with disabilities are important to the Church
and they have a vital place in the Church? How is it that many people in Church do not
understand what Paul says: parts of the body which are the least presentable and the
weakest are indispensable to the body. People who are the weakest are indispensable to the
Church and should be honoured.
Should be honoured!
Caring
Presence, being with, friendly relationships, tenderness, compassion. Consoling and being
consoled. Attitude of helping. Paradox of suffering and joy..

Call of God, who accompanies us
Vocation received from God, we are called by God. Discovering the presence of God. Trust in
God. In our patience Jesus accompanies us. God guides us and gives us strength. He gives a
meaning to life.
Questions for discussion
Is being a member of Faith and Light a vocation?
 What type of commitment are we looking for?
 What does being involved in Faith and Light mean?
14
19
Jean Vanier
Guided by the Spirit
Identity and Mission
Steering Group
Extracts from his conference
Good morning.
It is good to be here; good to be with each one of you, some I know better,
but others I know less well, but I am just happy to be with you, I am also very happy
to be eighty years old. In my foyer, in my home, when I was seventy, they said “You
don’t have to do the washing up any more”; when I got to eighty, they said “Go to
bed”, so it is a good life.
We have to learn, I have to learn to go into weakness. This is what it is all
about: fragility, vulnerability, and weakness. That is always the passage from a
founder, founders, to those who are called to continue. This is about to know how
to begin, but also to know how to leave, to give life and to trust.
So it is a joy to be here, and I am happy to be here for my last meeting with
Faith and Light. It is not a departure. It’s how to become more prayerful, to be
together in prayer and discover the mystery that we are called to live.
 The immensity of the pain
The first thing that strikes me about Faith
and Light is the number of mothers, fathers,
people with disabilities who are in terrible pain.
Just recently, in Kenya, they discovered in a
small area, two thousand people with disabilities
hidden away, and the parents ashamed. Mothers
holding their children with severe handicaps,
witnessing what they have lived, the husband who
had left, their anger, their depression, their
solitude. The pain of these women, the pain of
people with disabilities.
There is something cultural, deeply cultural
which is in the history of humanity: to have a
child with a disability is like a bad fruit which
means a bad tree. And we cannot underestimate
the immensity of the pain of parents and their
sons and daughters.
18
When I hear of a father or a mother
killing their son, what I am hearing is that
they have not had enough support. Some
parents live the unbearable.
But the pain is part of our world, and I
am not talking just of the pain of people
with intellectual disabilities; the pain of
mental sickness, the pain of all the physical
types of sickness.
The pain of slavery; a hundred
thousand women become slaves in
prostitution in Europe every year. Hundred
thousand! The growing gap between the rich
and the poor, and with the financial
difficulties, today, this gap will grow.
Everywhere there is this pain.
Chantal de Jonque and Franck Janin s.j.,
members of the Steering Group
The Task Force (page 22) determined very early in its
work, that a reflection on the structure could not be
done without a thorough reflection on identity and
mission. This is why a team was asked to guide a
discernment process on identity and mission. This
team was composed of Hervé Cuche, Claude Gravel,
Chantal de Jonque et Franck Janin. This team
proposed a discernment process to all Zones: not to
change the identity but rather to ensure that in our
reflection on the structures we do not lose sight of
essential of the mission.
F&L is a gift which God has sown in our hearts. This little seed holds all
the beauty of people with intellectual disability, all their value; we have
been asked to help this seed to grow and to show it to the world. The
people with intellectual disability have asked us to join with them, which
allows us to discover our own fragility. This message of unity is universal;
in this sense, the person with a disability is prophetic.
This alliance entails reciprocity in relationships and equality among
people; a movement working both ways. And it implies patience, humility,
love, truth, transparency, generosity, simplicity, accompaniment; these
attitudes are the expression of our spirituality. F&L transforms the lives of
people and calls for change in our hearts.
Secretariat Team: Céline, Adélaïde et Corinne.
Thank you for your excellent work
The interpreters’ team
15
Claude Gravel
Claude Gravel
Identity and Mission: The ingredients of our ecosystem
Identity and mission: Our relevancy
Extracts from his conference
Extracts from his conference
Question #3 asked to Zone Councils
To realize our identity and, so as to bear fruit in abundance,
what are the calls that I perceive being made upon Faith and Light today?
Our communities are like a small pond in the jungle of our world. They
constitute fragile ecosystems that need to be protected because they are
essential to the life of our societies.
Question #2 asked to Zone Councils
What are the essential characteristics that make Faith and Light unique?
In the feedback that we received, the Zone Councils confirmed the
following characteristics of Faith and Light:
For Faith and Light, this question refers to its contribution in our local communities, in our
churches, in our society. In other words, what is Faith and Light’s relevance in the world
today? To what need does Faith and Light respond? To what extent is Faith and Light
entrenched in the reality of our societies?
The answer to this question brings us out of ourselves and gives us a forward-moving
direction. The long term survival of Faith and Light is linked to our constantly renewed ability
to be in harmony with the relevant needs of our societies.
Answers that Zones Councils sent us:
Calls that move us forward and that really respond to our
contribution in our Churches and our societies
 Communities of meeting
around people with an
intellectual disability, their families and friends. Christian communities,
where God is revealed and is incarnated. They offer a safe place where
people can be themselves and exercise their gifts and where everyone
is responsible for using their gifts for the growth of the community
 Family support.
Imparting to people with a disability the fact that they are precious, that they are loved by God and that
they can open hearts. Meeting families with young people with disabilities. Being attentive to the call of
these families, the hopeful parents. Welcoming new members. Being integrated in parishes.
Announcing that people with a disability are loved by God and that they open our hearts. Work for
peace both within ourselves and around us, announcing that the person with a disability is a source of
peace and unity. Deepening, broadening ecumenism. Opening up to other religions. Being present in
places where there is a question of dignity and life, witnessing respect for life. Imparting to the world
the fact that we can live in a different way.
A presence to reduce isolation, suffering,
culpability and blame.
Calls concerning the ways and means to accomplish our
mission
 Fourth time, gatherings and summer camps to develop
friendship.
Reaffirming our identity, returning to our roots, deepening our spirituality. Developing leadership.
Finding chaplains. Running fund raising campaigns. Using the media to announce Faith and Light and
to invite young people. Preparing the replacements, not lowering our arms, no longer being afraid.
Using the Guidelines and living the spirit of Faith and Light in our daily lives.
 Ecumenism.
Ecumenism is the sharing of our gifts for our
mutual enrichment instead of emphasising the differences that separate
us.
 A big international family with the same spirit all around
the world. Common tools like the guidelines and the pilgrimages.
Questions for discussion
Questions for discussion


16
Is Faith and Light a Faith movement?
What is the place of the big spiritual events?
The fact that the answers either highlight, albeit indiscriminately, what is moving us
forward or what is bringing us back to ourselves, indicates a lack of focus in the
interpretation of Faith and Light’s fundamental contribution to our societies.
 What do we mean when we talk about family support?
 What does it entail when we say that our call is "Witnessing“?

17