Fr. Joseph P. Riordan, a Jesuit of the New York Province, was ordained to the priesthood on Saturday, June 13, 2009, at the Alumni Memorial Chapel of Loyola College in Baltimore, Maryland, by His Excellency Carlos Sevilla, bishop of Yakima.
Joe Riordan was born in New York, NY, the fourth of five children. He grew up in Eatontown, NJ and attended Rutgers College in New Brunswick, NJ. He spent his junior year in Madrid, and before returning home, he followed the way of St. James and made the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela on foot. He read English and Spanish literature and graduated from Rutgers with a bachelor’s degree in 1998.
Joe entered the Society of Jesus in 1998, in Syracuse, NY, and pronounced first vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in August 2000. He studied philosophy and theology at Fordham University for three years, earning a graduate degree in philosophy with a focus in ethics. For his regency, he taught classical languages at St. Peter’s Preparatory School in Jersey City, NJ, and coached the freshman baseball team.
Joe resumed his theology studies in 2006 at the Jesuit School of Theology in Berkeley, CA. While in Berkeley, he visited inmates at San Quentin State Prison and worked with students from U. Cal. Berkley. He completed his theological degrees (M.Div./S.T.B.) in May 2008, and returned to Oakland to be ordained a deacon in the new Cathedral of Christ the Light earlier this year.
Joe is currently stationed in Rome, where he is working toward a licentiate in Scripture at the Pontifical Biblical Institute. He serves as a deacon at the Jesuit church of St. Saba on the Aventine. After ordination, he will continue his studies in Rome.
Joe's first Mass of Thanksgiving was celebrated on Sunday, June 14, 2009, at Alumni Memorial Chapel of Loyola College.