This research is a joint project between L’Arche Internationale and the Institute of Citizenship and Diversity Management at Adyan. It aims at deepening and articulating the experience of the relationship with people with intellectual disabilities in the light of the Islamic faith and to build this experiential reading on accurate theological bases.

This general objective responds to specific objectives identified by a group called l’Arche and Islam

• Helping the Muslim assistants in L’Arche in understanding and enriching their life experience with people with intellectual disabilities in the light of the Islamic tradition. This would allow them to verify the coherence of their experience with their faith and give them the opportunity to deepen their faith in the awareness that the relationship with the vulnerable person makes of him/her a better Muslim, and from there, a person contributing to the building of the community of the faithful or in a larger sense, the human community.

• Helping communities develop means to spiritually nourish their Muslim members (core members, assistants, committee members) through awareness and provision of resources for training and accompaniment.
• Allow Christians, Muslims, and other members of a mixed community to respond to the questions of their larger community on the legitimacy of their experience.