The Community of the Ark is a small spiritual commune in southern

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

that was founded in 1948 by Lanza del Vasto. Lanza del Vasto was a non-violence activist and disciple of

Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...

. During the 1970s, many of the communards, under the leadership of del Vasto, took a leading role in the

civil disobedience Civil disobedience is the active, professed refusal of a citizen to obey certain laws, demands, orders or commands of a government (or any other authority). By some definitions, civil disobedience has to be nonviolent to be called "civil". H ...

campaign resisting the proposed extension of the military base on the

Larzac The Larzac, also known as the Causse of Larzac (French: ''Causse du Larzac''), is a limestone karst plateau in the south of the Massif Central, France, situated between Millau (in the département of l'Aveyron) and Lodève (in the départe ...

plateau. The campaign was ultimately triumphant. In the 1970s, the community spread to several locations, including

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...

and

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirte ...

. In the 1990s, some

communities A community is a social unit (a group of living things) with commonality such as place, norms, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given geographical area (e.g. a country, village, to ...

were closed due to conflicts and lack of new members.

External links

About the Community of the Ark

L'Arche de Saint Antoine (The Ark of Saint Antoine) website
in French and English.

External links

Further reading