My abiding interest is in the place where philosophy, psychology and spirituality
— East, West and beyond — intersect and mutually enhance one another.
— John G. Sullivan

A Life in Four Parts

My name is John G. Sullivan.  I am a native of Newport, Rhode Island and still hear the echoes of the ocean wherever I roam.

1. The Roman Catholic Church:   I am a former Roman Catholic priest.  I was ordained in 1963, studied in Rome during the Second Vatican Council (1963-66), and acted as Assistant Chancellor of the diocese of Providence, Rhode Island (1966-68).  I left the official ministry in 1968, when it became clear to me that the promise of Vatican II would not be realized.  I hold two earned doctorates: one in ecclesiastical law (J.C.D.,1966) from the Lateran University in Rome, Italy, and one in philosophy (Ph.D.,1982) from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.  

2. Elon University: In 1970, I joined the faculty at Elon University (then Elon College) in North Carolina. At Elon, I was winner of the Daniels-Danieley Award for Excellence in Teaching (1980), named Maude Sharpe Powell Professor of Philosophy (1985), and became Elon's first Distinguished University Professor (2002). I retired in August 2006, after 36 years teaching at Elon. In 2008, I received the Elon Medallion for long-time distinguished service. My personal Web page may be viewed at www.elon.edu/sullivan.

3. Tai Sophia Institute: In addition to my work at Elon, I am a long-time participant in the work of Tai Sophia Institute in Laurel, Maryland. I co-founded, in 1987, the Institute's SOPHIA project (School of Philosophy and Healing in Action), a program for adult learners that applies the philosophy underlying Chinese philosophy  to everyday life. More recently, I acted as principal designer in an innovative Master of Arts in Applied Healing Arts program that began at Tai Sophia in January 2002. This program extends the reach of the earlier SOPHIA work.  I continue to teach in that program.
   
   I am the author of two books: To Come to Life More Fully: An East West Journey (1991), and Living Large: Transformative Work at the Intersection of Ethics and Spirituality (2004). Click on the titles to purchase them through the Tai Sophia Institute Bookstore.

4. Second Journey: Most recently I have been working on issues of spirituality in later life with the North Carolina non-profit, Second Journey. My regular contributions to to Itineraries, their quarterly publication, which may be accessed with this link: secondjourney.org/JohnsCorner.htm.