Fr. Bart Jasilek, SVD
Spiritual children make up the big family priest always dreamed of
Growing up in Poland, Fr. Bart Jasilek, SVD envisioned a life filled with family—a big, lively household of his own. A tall man with a powerful voice, friends and family often suggested he’d be great at sharing the Word of God. “They’d say, ‘Maybe you should be a seminarian.’ But I didn’t want to think about it because I wanted to have a huge family with lots of children,” he recalls. “That was my dream.”
Everything changed when he visited an SVD novitiate house with a group from his parish. As he moved through the building, admiring artifacts and symbols of faith, something stirred within him—a pull he hadn’t felt before. Suddenly, the idea of a religious vocation seemed less crazy, even enticing. He entered formation with Divine Word Missionaries and was ordained in 2009.
Fr. Bart’s first assignment was in the United States, where he needed to learn English. He enrolled in English classes at Divine Word College in Epworth, Iowa, where the transition was humbling. He says he felt like a baby when he arrived. People talked to him, and he wanted to respond, but he couldn’t understand, and didn’t yet have the words. After a year of hard work, Fr. Bart was conversational in English and ready to serve.
Finding His Family in Missionary Life
Since 2011, Fr. Bart has served across the Southern Province of the U.S. in various pastoral roles, including associate pastor, parochial administrator, and parish priest. Today, he is the pastor of Immaculate Conception Church in Liberty, Texas, where he connects with people of all ages and diverse cultural backgrounds.
“Now as a missionary, all of the children are my spiritual children,” he said. “I wanted to have a huge family. Look at my family right now – I’m a spiritual father!”
In Texas, Fr. Bart also learned Spanish to better serve his multicultural parishioners. He’s come to appreciate that while traditions vary, they each carry unique meaning. His approach is to listen and understand before offering any guidance.
For example, his parishioners often start decorating for Christmas well before the holiday. Fr. Bart, raised in a Polish tradition that emphasizes waiting, initially wanted to slow their pace. But instead of correcting them, he listened to their reasons, and found it was simply a different cultural approach to the same joyous holiday.
“Now I'm learning more from my parishioners and I'm sharing my background with them so we can all become richer,” he said.
You cannot give what you do not have
Though Fr. Bart is known for his humor and friendliness, he deeply values solitude with God each night. “If I want to change somebody's life - I cannot give if I don't have, so if I don't have Jesus in me, how can I share and give Jesus to others?” he said.
In his early years as a seminarian, Fr. Bart was driven by the zeal to make a big difference. Now, his perspective has matured. Instead of pushing his own agenda, he seeks God’s guidance in how best to serve. He focuses on understanding his parishioners and nurturing his spirituality so he can truly be present for them.
“If I believe that God is calling me for a mission, God will use me, but I want to be clean and pure,” he said. “If the window is clean and pure, we can see better what is outside, and more sun can come into us. So as a missionary, I must be like the window for God. If I am clear and pure, then more sun can come through, and people can recognize God through my words and actions. If I want to change somebody's life - I cannot give if I don't have. If I don't have Jesus in me, how can I share and give Jesus to others?”
Another lesson Fr. Bart has embraced is the importance of being his authentic, genuine self. Sometimes that means showing his lighthearted side, like wearing T-shirts with playful, sarcastic sayings such as “Nacho Average Priest” or “The Sermonator.” He believes that just as a flower garden is more beautiful with a variety of blooms, so too are our communities enriched by the diversity of personalities and perspectives. Fr. Bart’s unique approach allows him to connect with people in a way that feels natural and sincere, showing that faith can be joyful, approachable, and true to who he is.
In a beautiful twist, Fr. Bart’s missionary life has brought him the family he always dreamed of, though in a form he hadn’t expected.
“For me, this is just simply amazing to take some steps back and look at every parish, every person, as a gift from God,” he said. “I wanted a big family. Now, the whole world is my family. Why? Because God gave me the gift to connect with every person.”
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