East Bay Catholics were informed on Wednesday, April 29, that the Diocese of Oakland would close 13 churches across the region amid financial struggles and years of declining parishioner numbers.
In a letter to the diocese, the Bishop of Oakland, Michael Barber, stated that the majority of the closures were in Oakland, along with four other churches in Alameda County and two in Contra Costa County.
Here’s the list of the 13 churches being closed:
- Mary Help of Christians, Oakland
- Our Lady of Guadalupe site at Blacow Road, Fremont
- Our Lady of Lourdes, Oakland
- Sacred Heart, Oakland
- St. Albert the Great, Alameda
- St. Andrew Kim Korean Pastoral Center, Oakland
- St. Augustine, Oakland
- St. Barnabas, Alameda
- St. Paschal Baylon, Oakland
- St. Patrick, Oakland
- St. Rose of Lima, Crockett
- St. Stephen, Walnut Creek
- Transfiguration, Castro Valley
Of the 80 churches throughout the region, Oakland was home to 19 churches or pastoral centers…