Fr. John M. Costello, SJ, the son of John Costello and Eleanor Clark Costello, was born on January 10, 1952, in Scranton, which he liked to say was in the anthracite region of Eastern Pennsylvania. He has one brother, Michael, who still lives there.
Fr. Costello went to and graduated from Scranton Prep (1966-70). Four years of being educated by the Jesuits fueled his interest in the Society. He went to Syracuse, N.Y., for College at Le Moyne (1970-74) where he graduated with a degree in sociology in 1974. That summer he entered the Jesuit Novitiate at St. Andrew Hall, right across from the Le Moyne campus, where Fr. Costello entered the Society of Jesus on August 20, 1974. After two years at St. Andrew Hall (1974-76) Fr. Costello moved, for the first time, to Murray-Weigel Hall in the Bronx where he did his philosophy studies at Fordham University (1976-78).
In 1978, Fr. Costello was assigned to regency at Regis High School in Manhattan where he began to earn his well-deserved reputation as a superb teacher. Regency (1978-81) was followed by theology studies at another Regis, that is Regis College in Toronto, Ontario, Canada (1981-84), where he earned both S.T.B. and M.Div. degrees.
In June of 1984, Fr. Costello was ordained a priest by John Cardinal O’Connor at the Fordham University Church. His first assignment after ordination was at McQuaid Jesuit in Rochester, N.Y., where he taught English and for a time was director of drama (1985-88). After three years at McQuaid, Fr. Costello went back to Fordham to study education administration (1988-89) and then became principal at Canisius High School in Buffalo, N.Y. (1989-92). Better suited to the classroom than the principal’s desk, in 1992 Fr. Costello went back to McQuaid where he taught English and was director of admissions (1992-97). Fr. Costello was on loan to teach for two years at Kearney High School (1998-2000). He was then back in the classroom at McQuaid for another five years (2000-05) where he taught English and religious studies.
After nearly 25 years working in the high school apostolate, Fr. Costello moved back to the Bronx, to Murray-Weigel Hall, where he had lived years earlier as a young scholastic. There he served as the community’s Father Minister and a house consultor (2005-09). In 2009, Fr. Costello started working part-time at Fordham Prep as an Adjunct Campus Minister until, in 2017, he was assigned to pray for the Church and the Society.
During these later years at Murray-Weigel Hall, Fr. Costello loved to shop for house supplies and could be seen happily fussing with plants in his garden. He’d be happy to engage you in conversation and he’d light up if you brought up the subject of movies about which he seemed to have an encyclopedic knowledge. He was always an avid reader and became more so as he got older, always up to date on the season’s best reads.
Fr. Costello died unexpectedly on February 11, 2026, World Day of the Sick. He had been at Mass that morning and at lunch. By mid-afternoon he was found in his room, at peace in his recliner chair. The book he had been reading was on the floor by the chair. More than 50 years a Jesuit and more than 40 years a priest, his death was at least as peaceful as it was unexpected. We trust that his passing into eternal life was joyfully welcomed by the Lord whom he had served so long and so well.
Click here to light a Virtual Candle in memoriam of the life and legacy of Fr. John M. Costello, SJ.
