Tim Costello
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Timothy Ewen Costello AO (born 4 March 1955) is an Australian
Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compe ...
minister who was the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Advocate of World Vision Australia. Costello worked as a lawyer and served as mayor of St Kilda. He has authored a number of books on faith and life. A National Trust poll in 2014 elected him one of Australia's 100 national living treasures.


Early life

Costello was born in Melbourne, Victoria, where he grew up in the suburb of
Blackburn Blackburn () is an industrial town and the administrative centre of the Blackburn with Darwen borough in Lancashire, England. The town is north of the West Pennine Moors on the southern edge of the Ribble Valley, east of Preston and north-n ...
and was educated at Carey Baptist Grammar School. He is a descendant of Irish immigrant Patrick Costello, who was expelled from the
Parliament of Victoria The Parliament of Victoria is the bicameral legislature of the Australian state of Victoria that follows a Westminster-derived parliamentary system. It consists of the King, represented by the Governor of Victoria, the Legislative Assembly an ...
in the 1860s for electoral fraud. Costello studied at
Monash University Monash University () is a public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Named for prominent World War I general Sir John Monash, it was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the state. The university h ...
, graduating with a Bachelor of Jurisprudence degree in 1976, a
Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Ch ...
in 1978 and a
Diploma of Education The Diploma of Education, often abbreviated to DipEd or GradDipEd, is a postgraduate qualification offered in many Commonwealth countries including Australia, Sri Lanka, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. Overview The diploma can build on the g ...
in 1979. Costello is the brother of Peter Costello, the former treasurer of Australia and Federal Member for Higgins.


Career


Legal

Costello practised as a solicitor in family and criminal law, both in established firms and in his own practice.


Ministry

In 1981, Costello travelled to Switzerland with his wife, Merridie, where they both studied theology at the International Baptist Seminary Rueschlikon near Zurich, before graduating with a Bachelor of Divinity and returning to Australia to become the minister of St Kilda Baptist Church. He also received a
Master of Theology Master of Theology ( la, Theologiae Magister, abbreviated MTh, ThM, or MTheol) is a post-graduate degree offered by universities, divinity schools, and seminaries. It can serve as a transition degree for entrance into a PhD program or as a sta ...
from Whitley College, a theological college of the Melbourne College of Divinity. Ordained as a Baptist minister in 1987, Costello, along with his wife Merridie and a team of others, rebuilt the congregation at the St Kilda Baptist Church and opened a drop-in centre. As part of the church's outreach program, he started a legal office at the church where he practised as a part-time solicitor. He also taught urban ministry at Whitley College, a college of the
University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb no ...
. From 1995 to 2003, Costello was a minister of the Collins Street Baptist Church and the executive director of Urban Seed, a Christian not-for-profit organisation created in response to concern about homelessness, drug abuse and the marginalisation of the city's street people. Costello served as the president of the Baptist Union of Australia from 1999 to 2002. He has also been patron of
Baptist World Aid Australia Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only (believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compete ...
, a member of the Australian Earth Charter Committee, a council member of the
Australian Centre for Christianity and Culture The Australian Centre for Christianity and Culture is a national Christian ecumenical centre, established in 1993, in Canberra, the national capital of Australia. It encourages dialogue and cooperation among Christian churches and between Christi ...
, a spokesperson for the Interchurch Gambling Taskforce, a member of the National Advisory Body on Gambling and a member of the Alcohol Education and Rehabilitation Foundation.


Political career

Costello was elected Mayor of St Kilda Council in 1993 and became well known for championing the cause of local democracy and for his clashes with the
Premier of Victoria The premier of Victoria is the head of government in the Australian state of Victoria. The premier is appointed by the governor of Victoria, and is the leader of the political party able to secure a majority in the Victorian Legislative Assemb ...
, Jeff Kennett. Kennett attacked Costello as being un-
Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...
n for speaking out against the gaming-led recovery of the state and often referred to him as "that leftist
cleric Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...
". Costello's political career ended when his mayoral position was abolished with the whole St Kilda Council in Kennett's reform and consolidation of local government in 1994. Towards the end of that time, he was approached by the
Australian Democrats The Australian Democrats is a centrist political party in Australia. Founded in 1977 from a merger of the Australia Party and the New Liberal Movement, both of which were descended from Liberal Party dissenting splinter groups, it was Austral ...
political party to fill a
casual vacancy In politics, a casual vacancy (''casual'' in the sense of "by chance") is a situation in which a seat in a deliberative assembly becomes vacant during that assembly's term. Casual vacancies may arise through the death, resignation or disqualifi ...
in the Senate, but decided against it, partly due to the likelihood that this could place him in direct conflict with his brother if
Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a sur ...
became
Treasurer A treasurer is the person responsible for running the treasury of an organization. The significant core functions of a corporate treasurer include cash and liquidity management, risk management, and corporate finance. Government The treasury ...
. Costello was an elected delegate at the
Australian Constitutional Convention In Australian history, the term Constitutional Convention refers to four distinct gatherings. 1891 convention The 1891 Constitutional Convention was held in Sydney in March 1891 to consider a draft Frame of Government for the proposed federation ...
in Canberra in February 1998. Throughout the late 1990s and early 2000s, he was frequently seen in the Australian national media commenting on gambling and other social problems. He also has spoken out in favour of stronger gun control in Australia, acting at times as the co-chairman or spokesman of the National Coalition for Gun Control.


World Vision Australia

Costello was appointed as CEO of World Vision Australia on 24 November 2003. Having spent much of his career focussing on local and domestic issues, Costello said he relished the opportunity to focus on international issues. In his first full year in the role, Costello became the face of Australia's response to the
Boxing Day Tsunami An earthquake and a tsunami, known as the Boxing Day Tsunami and, by the scientific community, the Sumatra–Andaman earthquake, occurred at 07:58:53 local time (UTC+7) on 26 December 2004, with an epicentre off the west coast of northern Sum ...
. Costello led fundraising efforts, and World Vision Australia raised over $118 million for relief and rehabilitation programs. During Costello's tenure, the organisation grew from funding 480 projects benefiting 10.4 million people, to more than 800 World Vision development projects benefiting close to 100 million people across the globe including in Australia. After 13 years as CEO, Costello announced that he was stepping aside to become the Chief Advocate for World Vision Australia on 9 May 2016. He remained as Chief Advocate for a further two years before resigning on 7 June 2019, citing the physical and emotional toll of the role over many years.


Other roles

Costello has since become the Director of Ethical Voice, Executive Director of Micah Australia and a Senior Fellow at Centre for Public Christianity. He is also Chair of the Community Council of Australia and an Advocate for the Alliance for Gambling Reform.


Awards and honours

Costello received the
Victorian of the Year The Victorian of the Year is an award given to the most outstanding Victorian in any given year. The Victorian of the Year is awarded in Melbourne by the Victoria Day Council as part of Victoria Day celebrations on 1 July annually. The Victoria ...
award in July 2004 in recognition of his public and community service. He was made an officer of the
Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gov ...
in June 2005 and was the Victorian nominee for the Australian of the Year award in 2006. He is the 2008 winner of the
Australian Peace Prize The Australian Peace Prize was an annual award presented from 2006 to 2009 to an Australian citizen or resident, or to a group based in Australia, for outstanding contributions towards peace. It was awarded by the Peace Organisation of Australia.< ...
awarded by the
Peace Organisation of Australia The Peace Organisation of Australia was a non-profit and non-religious organisation based in Melbourne, Australia which was active from 2005 to 2009. Its stated objective was the promotion of world peace through education. The organisation was est ...
. He is also listed by the National Trust as a " National Living Treasure". In 2008, Costello received an
honorary doctorate An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hon ...
from the Australian Catholic University in recognition of "his contributions to religious life and social justice".


Publications

*Costello, Tim; Riddell, Michael; Gill, Athol; Nichols, Alan; U'ren, John; Duncan, Michael; Corney, Peter; ''Ministry in an Urban World: Responding to the City'', Acorn Press, ACT, 1991, *Costello, Tim, ''Streets of Hope: Finding God in St Kilda'' Allen & Unwin, 1997, *Costello, Tim, ''Tips from a Travelling Soul Searcher'' Allen & Unwin, 1999, *Costello, Tim and Millar, Royce, ''Wanna Bet? Winners and Losers in Gambling's Luck Myth'', Allen & Unwin, Sydney, 2000. *Costello, Tim and Yule, Rod, ''Another Way to Love'', Acorn Press, 2009, *Costello, Tim, ''Hope'', Hardie Grant Books, 2012, *Costello, Tim, ''Faith: Embracing Life in all its Uncertainty'', Hardie Grant Books, 2017, *Costello, Tim, ''A Lot with a Little'', Hardie Grant Books, 2019,


References


External links


Monash University alumni webpage

World Vision CEO profile

Profile at ICMI
{{DEFAULTSORT:Costello, Tim 1955 births 21st-century Australian Baptist ministers Australian republicans Delegates to the Australian Constitutional Convention 1998 Gun control advocates Living people Monash Law School alumni Officers of the Order of Australia People educated at Carey Baptist Grammar School Religious leaders from Melbourne 20th-century Australian Baptist ministers