Description
Fr. Jim Sullivan was born in Waterbury, Connecticut. He attended John F. Kennedy High School in Waterbury and then earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from Providence College in Rhode Island, graduating in 1982. Always believing in service to others, he then volunteered for one year at an inner-city school in Washington D.C., where he taught in a grade school, coached basketball, and repaired a rundown convent. It was there that he discovered a love for building and restoration work. Upon his return to Connecticut, he and his brother John established Sullivan Brothers, LLC in 1987, a building and contracting company. The company grew to over 30 employees and over 50 subcontractors. He worked in the construction trade for the next 25 years. Ordained a deacon in 2008, he eventually heard the call to priesthood and was ordained by Archbishop Leonard P. Blair on May 17, 2014. In 2019, Fr. Sullivan was appointed Rector of the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in downtown Waterbury, the home parish of Blessed Michael McGivney and the Mother Church of the city. Waterbury was once described as the “most Catholic city in America.” In 2024, the parish expanded to include four churches and an elementary school, at which time it assumed its original name of 1857, Immaculate Conception Parish. Fr. Sullivan continues to love building, but after ten years ofpriesthood, he reflects, “I have moved from building and restoring homes to building and restoring hearts.”—————————————————————–
Foreword to “23 1/2 Degrees Away From God”:
Pope Saint Paul VI once wrote that people today listen more willingly to witnesses than to teachers, and if they do listen to teachers it is because those teachers are witnesses. Our Catholic Faith is founded on the witness of the Apostles, and it falls to believers in every generation to imitate them by giving witness to the truth as we are graced to see it with the eyes of faith.
Father Jim Sullivan is a witness who has kept his eyes wide open to divine grace at work in his own life and the life of others. Now, happily, in the pages of this book he shares what he has lived and witnessed firsthand. For the devout, what he has to say is a challenge to greater missionary discipleship. For the wavering and lukewarm it is an encouragement to a more authentic life of faith. For those who have ‘tilted” away from God, to use Fr. Sullivan’s image, it is an invitation to “repent and believe” in response to the call of Jesus.
Together with Fr. Sullivan, may readers be inspired “to put out into the deep” as Jesus instructed the Apostles, and move themselves and our world closer to God “one degree at a time.”
Most Reverend Leonard P. Blair
Archbishop Emeritus of Hartford
highburypress (verified owner) –
“Through a series of deeply personal stories, Father Jim Sullivan reveals the seeds and growth of his Catholic faith that eventually led him to the priesthood. As we walk with Father Jim through both high and low points, we meet many lively characters who helped to make him into the man he is today, including a fellow Connecticut priest, Blessed Michael McGivney, the holy founder of the Knights of Columbus, who serves as an inspiration for Father Jim and many others. Every reader will find enrichment, enlightenment and enjoyment in this well-told tale of a Catholic life.”
Patrick E. Kelly
Supreme Knight, Knights of Columbus
highburypress (verified owner) –
“A keen observer of human life and of the ways of God, and with a gift for telling a story well, Fr. Jim Sullivan’s book – 23 ½ Degrees – is a great read!
“With the experience of his own life as a reference point, and that of the lives of numerous others encountered along life’s journey, Fr. Jim traces the “Golden Thread’s” – a living-faith in Jesus Christ – powerful and positive impact on the lives of people like you and me in stories which contain the secret to happiness.
“As the book warms one’s heart, it will inspire the reader to live with greater passion and purpose – ‘the ordinary of everyday life’ – by recognizing the power of simple kindnesses, courtesies and virtues to change one’s life and that of our families, communities and Church.
“Keep this book on your nightstand, and apply its wisdom toward a more wholesome and holy life!”
Mother Agnes Mary, SV
Sisters of Life