John Sullivan (Jesuit)

[1][2] Sullivan was known for his life of deep spiritual reflection and personal sacrifice; he is recognised for his dedicated work with the poor and spent much of his time walking and (notably) riding his bike[3] to visit those who were troubled or ill in the villages around Clongowes Wood College, where he taught from 1907 until his death.

Sullivan had long been admired during his life and was known as a man of inspirational holiness which prompted for calls for his beatification; the cause later opened and would culminate on 7 November 2014 after Pope Francis confirmed his heroic virtue and named him as Venerable.

Sullivan was raised as a Protestant and was baptized in the local Church of Ireland parish of Saint George on Temple Street on 15 July 1861.

[9] In 1877 his brother Robert (1853–77) drowned after a boating accident in Killiney Bay along with Constance Exham who was the daughter of a family friend.

He was awarded the Gold Medal in Classics in 1885 and he studied for the English Bar at Lincoln's Inn in London,[1] His father's sudden death was a great shock to him.

"That he was a man of ability, experience and judgement was indicated by his appointment in 1895 by the Conservative government to a commission to investigate the widespread massacre of Armenians in Ardana, Asia Minor.

"[9] He was a frequent visitor to the Hospice of the Dying at Harold's Cross where he brought comfort and companionship in addition to small tokens of food and drink as well as clothing to those ill people.

[9] Even after he became a teacher at Clongowes Wood College he continued these small luxuries to the poor including a bit of tobacco while also providing them with tea and sugar as well as oranges and apples.

Sullivan soon after took up a teaching position at Clongowes Wood College which was an all-male boarding school the Jesuits managed near Clane, County Kildare.

"[9] He was buried in Clongowes Wood Cemetery, but in 1960 his remains were transferred to the Sacred Heart Chapel of Saint Francis Xavier Church on Upper Gardiner Street.

Sullivan's beatification depended on the approval of a miracle that was an unexplainable healing after his death; one such case was investigated in Ireland and it received Roman validation on 10 February 2006.

Due to his reportedly having the gift of healing, there is a constant demand for blessings with his profession crucifix[10] which had previously belonged to his mother.

The Catholic Auxiliary Bishop James Kavanagh attended and bought with him a text from Pope John Paul II reading: "His Holiness asks you to convey his cordial greetings to all present.

In communion of prayer he gives thanks to Almighty God for the extraordinary gifts bestowed on Sullivan during his life and for the spirit of mutual understanding, reconciliation and goodwill which his memory enkindles between various Christian communities in Ireland today".