St. Irenaeus is often credited with saying, “The glory of God is man fully alive,” and when Deacon Greenan Sullivan shares his experiences working in parishes, he becomes noticeably animated. At the beginning of our interview, for which he took time away from studying for final exams at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary, he asked to limit our time to 30 minutes. Yet when the Zoom call ended after 40 minutes, he immediately rejoined and excitedly continued, explaining he had “found a lot of joy” in parish work. That he’s found such joy is a confirming sign ahead of his ordination to the priesthood, which will take place on Saturday, June 6, at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Fort Wayne. But Deacon Sullivan will be the first to tell you that, though the seeds of his call were planted early, they weren’t always tended to. In fact, he spent a decade of his life evading this call. Denying His Calling A South Bend native, Deacon Sullivan is the oldest of six children whose parents fostered a faith-filled home. They read from the Magnificat together each day, learning to hear God’s voice through Scripture — an experience Deacon Sullivan calls “a very formative part of my upbringing.” Outside the home, Sullivan was drawn to altar serving, often serving not only on Sundays but also at weekday Masses in the summers. He began experiencing early stirrings toward the priesthood during middle school. However, like the seed that fell among thorns in Luke’s Gospel, those stirrings were soon choked by life’s anxieties and pleasures before they could bear mature fruit. Though he continued to feel called to the priesthood in high school, Deacon Sullivan says he “rejected that call” because he was more concerned with fitting in. “I didn’t want to live the way that I thought that God wanted me to live,” he recalled. “So, I got into some bad habits and did not want to focus on a possible vocation. And that persisted all the way to about junior year in college.” Letting ‘the Enemy’s Voice Prevail’ At Ave Maria University in Florida, Sullivan found success on the basketball court as a collegiate athlete and in the classroom as a biochemistry major. As he focused on crafting the life he wanted, he experienced intermittent moments of grace when he had the clarity to recognize he wasn’t truly happy. Yet, whenever those moments came, he’d inevitably cede to “the enemy’s voice,” which reminded him of everything he’d have to give up if he wanted to live a holy life entirely devoted to God. “I kind of let the enemy’s voice prevail during those years,” he recollected, noting that doing so led to “a soft form of despair, where it’s like, oh, actually living this virtuous holy life — this life I really think God’s calling me to — is out of my ability.” The moments of grace failed to take root, in part, because Sullivan’s prayer life lacked consistency and depth. “I would still go to Sunday Mass, and I might say a Rosary here or there, but it was always organized around if I needed something,” he shared. Then one day, Sullivan had a realization. “It was a moment where I realized: The way I’m doing things now is not going to lead to anywhere positive, certainly not going to lead to my happiness,” he recalled. Reorienting His Life In response, he returned to his roots by making time for regular confession and returning to daily Mass. Then, he signed up for a Holy Hour at the university’s 24-hour adoration chapel — though he admits his initial intentions needed refining. “It was really more of a pride hour, because I signed up for 3:30 a.m. on Sundays to show I was serious,” he told Today’s Catholic. “But God still used that time in adoration to speak to me and encourage me,” he said. He soon began spending those early morning hours reading his Magnificat, and through that, his childhood love of Scripture was rekindled. Sullivan continued to orient his life around prayer and the sacraments during his senior year at Ave Maria, and he said those practices gave him the grace necessary to finally respond to God’s call. “All of a sudden, very directly, the thought of becoming a priest entered back into my mind,” he said. “At that point, I really had the freedom and the grace from the sacraments to [realize] it was not only what God was calling me to do but was what I wanted to do as well,” he continued. “So, I was able to align my will with His, finally, after about a decade.” Deepening His Love of the Lord Upon graduating, he wasn’t fully ready to enter the seminary, so he returned to Ave Maria to complete a theology degree. Providentially, as a biochemistry major, Sullivan had filled all his electives with theology classes (“because I just enjoyed them,” he said). This enabled him to complete a theology degree in one year before joining Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in 2020. In seminary, Sullivan thrived. He found the academic formation “very excellent” and was inspired by his teachers, whose love for learning and sharing about God was infectious. He also formed a strong community with his fellow seminarians and said that leaving them is the only downside of becoming ordained. Through classes and prayer opportunities, Sullivan learned forms of mental and contemplative prayer that helped him develop a conversational prayer life with God, and he claims, “The greatest benefit that I received from formation here at the Mount is a deepening of my prayer life and my friendship and love of the Lord.” Finding Purpose in Parishes Sullivan spent three of his five summers as a seminarian working in parishes, with placements at St. John the Baptist in Fort Wayne, St. Pius X in Granger, and SS. Casimir and Adalbert in South Bend. He found these experiences helpful and noted that as a new seminarian in his first parish placement, “You really don’t know what to do, and that’s part of the point.” His placements first allowed him to learn what goes on in a parish outside of sacraments by sitting in on financial, pastoral and staff meetings. He recalls realizing, “Oh, I have to be concerned about taking care of the grounds of a parish.” His summer assignments also showed him the importance of building relationships with parishioners. Finally, as a deacon, he learned to both administer the sacraments and work with students through parish youth group activities and catechesis. During his last parish placement, in South Bend, Deacon Sullivan thrived most. He found deep beauty in presiding over funerals and baptisms, and in passing along his seminary knowledge to high schoolers and college students who worked as catechists. Working in youth ministry was meaningfully redemptive for Deacon Sullivan, as he experienced God bringing good out of his wayward past by enabling him to uniquely empathize with those who were spiritually struggling and to offer them guidance. ‘A Great Love for the Faith’ Deacon Sullivan said he is excited to be ordained on June 6 at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Fort Wayne. Reflecting on his journey, he said: “I definitely think that part of my discernment was that the Lord had given me a great love for the Faith — and for learning about the Faith — at an early age. Part of any discernment is looking at where the Lord has moved in your life and what true desires He has put on your heart. And that’s always been one: the love of the Faith and teaching it.” After spending many years evading it, it is within the pursuit of ordained life that Deacon Sullivan has found happiness. He now looks forward to a lifetime of sharing the joy of the Faith with others. About Deacon Greenan Sullivan Home parish: St. Anthony de Padua, South Bend Ordained a deacon: May 24, 2025, at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Fort Wayne Favorite hobbies: Basketball, fantasy novels Favorite saints: St. Jude and St. Lawrence Favorite Scripture: 1 Maccabees 3:17-19 What made you want to be a priest? A love for souls. First Mass of Thanksgiving Following his ordination, Father Greenan Sullivan will celebrate his First Mass of Thanksgiving at 10:30 a.m. at St. Anthony de Padua Parish in South Bend. A Corpus Christi procession will follow Mass, with a reception afterward in the parish hall. The post Meet the Ordinandi: Deacon Greenan Sullivan appeared first on Today's Catholic. ...read more read less