By Susan Stevenot Sullivan, Staff Writer

ATLANTA--Sister Virginia Bartolac, SCL, who has been an appellate judge in the Court of Appeals for the Province of Atlanta since 1991, has accepted the position of chancellor for the Diocese of Jefferson City in Missouri.

It’s been a very difficul decision,” she said of the process of accepting the new role, which she expects to assume July 1. “I see it as an opportunity to develop my ecclesial mission as a baptized person.”

“It’s a call, a calling forth to the church in the Midwest.”

Geographically the move is a return to her roots, Sister Bartolac was born and raised in Kansas City, Kan. and her order, the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth, is based in Leavenworth, Kan.

“I see it as very helpful because of my need to be closer to family and community at this particular time, my mother having passed away in December and my father’s death imminent,” she said.

Sister Bartolac will be the second non-cleric to serve as chancellor in the Diocese of Jefferson City and one of approximately 35 women serving as chancellors nationwide. Her predecessor, Sister Mary Margaret Johanning, SSND, who died in the fall of 1994, was held in high regard by the staff, Sister Bartolac said.

“It’s wonderful to know that the person in that position had a wonderful impact on the diocese and that...I will be able to participate in that.”

While she is saddened by the good-byes which will fill the weeks to come, Sister Bartolac is energized by the opportunity to serve in a leadership role in the operation of the Diocese of Jefferson City.

The lengthy job description includes “working collaboratively with the diocesan bishop and vicar general in formulation and integration of diocesan policies and responding to ‘pastoral concerns of priest’ and working closely with pastoral administrators.”

“The focus in the new position as chancellor has three prongs,” Sister Bartolac said, ‘administrative, pastoral and canonical and so in that regard should offer many challenges. I’m sure many gifts will be called upon in a new way.”

Whatever her duties, Sister Bartolac said pastoral involvement is the most important part of any work she does.

As one of a small number of women canon lawyers who serve as diocesan chancellors in the United States, Sister Bartolac acknowledges the pioneering aspects of her new job. Pioneering, she said, is an element of her community’s charism.

“It means being open to the spirit, to where the Spirit is calling you in whatever situation you find yourself to be,” Sister Bartolac said.

Her new location will facilitate continuing consultation work for her religious community as well. She is currently undergoing training to assume responsibility as a member of the board of directors of one of eight hospitals sponsored by the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth Health Services Corp.

During her years in Atlanta Sister Bartolac has been active in the Canon Law Society of America and the Atlanta Conference of Sisters. She has served as an instructor for the archdiocesan pastoral ministry formation program, worked with Pilot International in its effort to help the disabled and served many hours in the Georgia dome to raise funds for the St. Vincent de Paul Society.

Sister Bartolac said her years with the Court of Appeals have been “very fulfilling and informative.” The provincial Court of Appeals includes the five diocese of the province: Atlanta, Savannah, Charleston, Charlotte and Raleigh.

It’s been gratifying to work in this court,” she said. “There’s such a rapport among the courts. The interchange has been very challenging and stimulating. It’s been wonderful to be a part of that...and so I carry that with me.”

Sister Bartolac majored in English at St. Mary’s College Leavenworth campus. She then taught for a year at her alma mater, Bishop Ward High School, before entering the novitiate. Final vows were made in 1968.

Sister Bartolac taught English, journalism, mass media and film on the secondary level for 13 years. During that time she also served as an associate administrator for six years and earned master’s degrees in English and educational administration.

At that point Sister Bartolac felt a call to another mission in the church. A year’s service in the Tribunal for the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph convinced her of the new direction. She entered the school of canon law at Catholic University in Washington, DC.

She describes the five years which resulted in a doctorate in canon law in 1989 as “a wonderful time.”

Her first post-doctoral position was in the Tribunal of the Diocese of Venice, Fla. She served there for two years before being offered the appellate court position here.

“In so many ways,” she said, looking back on how her life has unfolded, “it’s just providential how things happen.”