Bishop Emeritus John W. Yanta

Bishop Emeritus John W. Yanta, of the Archdiocese of San Antonio and the Diocese of Amarillo, died peacefully at his home in San Antonio on August 6.  He was 90 years old and still active as Chairman of the Board and President of the Polish Heritage Center at Panna Maria Foundation. 

John Walter Yanta was born on a farm in Runge, TX on Oct. 2, 1931, the fifth of eight children of John Andrew Yanta and Mary Magdalen Pollok who were natives of Panna Maria, the oldest Polish parish in the United States.  He attended public school in Runge and then moved to San Antonio to attend Central Catholic High School before entering St. John’s Seminary.  After three years, he returned home to assist his ailing father in running the farm, but was able to return to St. John's, and then went on to Assumption Seminary.  He was ordained a priest in 1956.

Father Yanta’s first assignment was as Assistant Pastor of St. Ann’s Catholic Church in San Antonio where he was instrumental in forming a youth ministry and a Catholic Youth Organization (CYO). He was so successful, he was made director of the archdiocesan CYO program for 6 years. He became Pastor at Sacred Heart and then St. James parishes in San Antonio and was founder of the San Antonio Neighborhood Youth Organization, an exemplary federally funded program for developing leadership in targeted distressed communities. He was the Executive Director for 6 years and then turned the program over to the leaders he had developed.  He also headed up the Archdiocesan Office for the Laity where he directed the Better World Spiritual Renewal program throughout the Archdiocese for 3 years.  He was Editor of Today’s Catholic Newspaper and was co-founder and first executive director of Catholic Television of San Antonio (CTSA).

Bishop Yanta was consecrated an Auxiliary Bishop of the San Antonio Archdiocese on the feast of the Holy Family, December 30, 1994 by Archbishop Patrick Flores, with Bishop Nossol of Opole, Poland and Bishop Grahmann of Dallas as co-consecrators, and Cardinal Maida of Detroit as the homilist at the ceremony in Panna Maria, Texas.  He was installed as the Bishop of Amarillo, Texas on March 17, 1997 where he served for 11 years and was noted for his strong work ethic in rebuilding the Diocese and his effective pro-life advocacy. He was also active in the US Conference of Catholic Bishops where he served on committees dealing with migration and refugee services, farm workers and marriage and family life.  Completing his service, Bishop Yanta became Bishop Emeritus in 2008 and returned to San Antonio where he has been active in his efforts to envision, recruit a leadership team and successfully lead the design, development and construction of the Polish Heritage Center at Panna Maria.  He has also been active in leading study groups, promoting the rosary and being a mentor to other leaders in the community. 

John W. Yanta was the first Texan of Polish descent to become a Bishop. He has always had an interest in his Polish ethnicity and heritage and was a charter member of a group of priests founding the Polish American Priests Association (PAPA) of Texas in 1970. He founded the Polish American Congress of Texas in 1971, serving as President for five terms. He attended the Kosciuszko Foundation Summer Session at Jagellonian University, Krakow, Poland, 1971, and the University of Kansas Summer Program at Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznan, Poland, 1972.  Bishop Yanta was the originator and leader of the first-ever tour of Silesian Polish Texans back to the Opole areas of Upper Silesia of Poland in 1973.  He coordinated Pope John Paul II's visit with Panna Maria parishioners and Texas Polonia on September 13, 1987, and was general chairman of the first Polish American Priests Association Convention, April 16-19, 1990 in San Antonio. He was elected first National President of PAPA on April 11, 1991 in Chicago, Illinois and was general chairman of the Father Leopold Moczygemba Centennial in 1991. He also founded the Polish American Council of Texas in 2011.  On June 13, 2019, Bishop Yanta was awarded the Commander’s Cross of the Order of Merit by Polish President Andrzej Duda for his life-long work on behalf of American Polonia.

At the Grand Opening of the Polish Heritage Center, Bishop Yanta stated:

“Our immigrant ancestors gave us a distinctive first class beginning and I, as one of the descendants, realize the debt I owe to them.  We must pass on their history of faith, of taming their new land and overcoming hardships for future generations.  I thank God for being with us, step by step, along the way.  For me, it’s my call to stewardship.  I knew God wanted me to do something: to memorialize our Polish ancestors and preserve the past for the future generations.”

Bishop Yanta is survived by brothers Wilfred Yanta of Runge and Joseph James Yanta of San Antonio.  He was preceded in death by his parents, John Andrew Yanta and Mary Magdalen Pollok, sister Valeria, and brothers Edwin, Ernest, Fabian and Vernon.

Funeral Services for Bishop Yanta are as follows:

Tuesday, August 16:

Visitation at 1:00pm

Rosary at 2:30pm

 St James the Apostle Catholic Church

907 W. Theo Ave., San Antonio, TX

Tuesday, August 16:

Visitation at 5:00pm

Rosary at 7:00pm

St. Paul’s Catholic Church

350 Sutton Dr., San Antonio, TX

Wednesday, August 17:

Funeral Mass 10:00am

San Fernando Cathedral

115 Main Plaza, San Antonio, TX

Archbishop Gustavo Garcia-Siller, MSpS, the main celebrant.

Reception to follow.

Wednesday, August 17:

Visitation at 5:00pm

Rosary at 7:00pm

Immaculate Conception Catholic Church

13879 N. FM 81, Panna Maria, TX

Thursday, August 18:

Funeral Mass 9:00am

Immaculate Conception Catholic Church

13879 N. FM 81, Panna Maria, TX

Bishop Michael Boulette, the main celebrant.

Reception to follow.

Memorial Contributions

In lieu of flowers, Bishop Yanta invites your support of

the Polish Heritage Center at Panna Maria and the Allied Women’s Center.