Bishop Gary Janak
Bishop Gary W. Janak was born in El Campo, Texas on March 22, 1962. He is the third of four children born to Josephat “Joe” and Rose Marie Janak. His father died in 1998. He has two sisters, Cindy Junek and Sharon Foltyn, a brother, Allan Janak, eight nieces and nephews, and twelve grand nieces and nephews. Bishop Janak says his Czech heritage has provided a great grounding force for him, in terms of his faith and the call to be connected to God, family, and service to the Catholic Church.
Raised in Palacios, Texas, a rural, multi-lingual and multi-cultural community on the Texas Gulf Coast, he graduated in 1980 from Palacios High School. After attending Wharton County Junior College, he transferred to the University of Texas in Austin. In 1982, he entered Immaculate Heart of Mary Seminary in Santa Fe, New Mexico, as one of the seminarians for the newly formed Diocese of Victoria in Texas. In 1983 he received his bachelor’s degree in history from the College of Santa Fe and began his theological formation at Assumption Seminary in San Antonio in 1984. He was awarded his Master of Divinity degree from Oblate School of Theology in 1988.
Bishop Janak was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Victoria on May 14, 1988. He earned a Licentiate in Canonical Jurisprudence (JCL) from The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., in 1995 and a master’s degree in counseling from the University of Victoria-Houston in 1997. He has been licensed by the state of Texas as a professional counselor since 2000.
His pastoral experience in the Diocese of Victoria included assignments as parochial vicar of the Cathedral of Our Lady of Victor, priest in residence at Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Victoria, pastor of Saint Joseph Church in Yoakum, pastor of Saint Philip the Apostle Church in El Camp, and rector of the Cathedral of Our Lady of Victoria.
His community involvement has encompassed a myriad of organizations. He was a member of the Board of Hospice of South Texas in 1994; state spiritual director for the Czech Catholic Union of Texas (KJT); chaplain for Knights of Columbus councils in Victoria, Yoakum, and El Campo; and member of the Board of Trustees for St. Joseph Catholic High School in Victoria, chaplain for the Victoria Police Department, and state chaplain for KJZT Family Life.
In addition to his parish and chancery ministries, Bishop Janak has served on several mission trips to Nicaragua, as well as traveling to Guatemala with the Faith in Practice medical mission team.
Bishop Janak has a keen interest in assisting and counseling with married couples and has been a presenting priest for the Retrouvaille program since 2006 and designed a marriage retreat for couples entitled Choosing to Live Our Vows Every Day (Choosing to L.O.V.E.). In 2016, he assisted in the founding of The Emmaus Center, a diocesan-sponsored counseling and spiritual direction center, where he practiced professional and pastoral counseling.
His hobbies include reading, running, biking, paddle boarding, and enjoying, as much as possible, the gifts of nature and silence.
Bishop Janak is a member of the Canon Law Society of America and the American Counseling Society.
His Mass of episcopal ordination was celebrated on April 20, 2021, at Saint Mark the Evangelist Catholic Church in San Antonio. From 2021-2025 he served as Archdiocesan Vocation Director and Director of Seminarians. He supervised the discernment program, archdiocesan seminarians, and the promotion of vocations in the Archdiocese. On July 1, 2025, he began his service as Rector of Assumption Seminary.
He currently serves as Chancellor of the Archdiocese of San Antonio. His responsibilities include overseeing archdiocesan archives, Catholic organizations and apostolates, the archdiocesan pastoral council, as well as canonical assistance to parishes. He selected Give Your Servant a Listening Heart, as his episcopal motto.
