About Deacon Jack Sullivan
History
Early Life
Born John A. Sullivan in 1938, to Dorothy and Arthur Sullivan. Growing up in Braintree, MA attending public schools and graduating Braintree high in 1957. Then he went on to Stonehill College majoring in history of government and philosophy. Following undergraduate studies, he enrolled in a Masters of Foreign Service program at Georgetown University. Afterwards, Deacon Sullivan received his law degree from Suffolk University Law School in 1967.
Work
Upon graduation from Suffolk Law School, Deacon Jack went into private practice focusing on trial work, both criminal and civil. After five years into private practice, he successfully tried his first murder case and later on appeared in our state Supreme Judicial Court on three occasions. In 1980, after 13 years of trial practice, Deacon Jack was appointed Clerk/Magistrate of Plymouth District Court and retired immediately before the beatification of Bl. Cardinal Newman in 2010 after 30 years of service. During his years at the court, he emphasized the development of our involuntary commitment laws as they related to mental, alcohol and substance abuse cases.
After retiring from his legal career, he and his wife Carol faithfully ran both ministries– Parish ministry at St. Thecla in Pembroke, MA and the Deacon’s prison ministry at the County Correctional Facility in Plymouth, MA.
Family
Deacon Jack Sullivan was married on April 26th, 1969 to Carolyn M. Mulvee and blessed with three children: Brian, Jen, and Jessica. He has two grandchildren from son Brian, Nora Elizabeth born in 2009 and Ronan Thomas born in 2011.
Religion
History
In September 1998, he entered the Permanent Diaconate Formation Program for the Archdiocese of Boston and was ordained at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross on September 14, 2002. Since he has been practicing at St. Thecla Parish in Pembroke, MA and regularly performs prison ministry at the Plymouth County Correction Facility.
Miracles
On August 15, 2001, Deacon Sullivan was healed from a cripling spinal disorder after praying to Cardinal Newman. On July 3, 2009 Pope Benedict XVI announced that the healing was in fact a miracle, leading to Cadinal Newman’s beatification in England on September 19, 2010. Sullivan was present acting as deacon of the beatification proclaiming the Gospel with the Pope as celebrant. Deacon Sullivan is in possession of the only first-class relic of Newman other than the original in the Oratory Church in the UK. With it he has hosted numerous talks about Newman, his own miracle and healing services. Deacon Sullivan conducts his ministries in Beloved honor of John H. Cardinal Newman for his miracle that led to his ordainment and allowing him to help heal others, as well.