Roman Catholic Diocese of Oakland
The Diocese of Oakland () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory, or diocese, of the Catholic Church in the San Francisco Bay Area of California in the United States. It is a suffragan diocese in the ecclesiastical province of the metropolitan Archbishop of San Francisco. The Diocese of Oakland comprises Alameda and Contra Costa Counties. Its mother church is the Cathedral of Christ the Light in Oakland. Its patron saints are Mary, mother of Jesus and Francis de Sales. History Name changes The East Bay area has undergone several different Catholic jurisdictions since it became part of the United States. Diocese of the Two Californias (1840 to 1849) Diocese of Monterey (1849 to 1853) Archdiocese of San Francisco (1853 to 1962 Diocese of Oakland (1962 to present) 1772 to 1840 The first known mass in the Eastern Bay region was celebrated in 1772 by the missionary Juan Crespí near present-day Lake Merritt during the first European visit there. The Mission San José was established in 1797 by Fermin de Lasuen in present-day Fremont to evangelize the Chochenyo people. By this time, California had become part of the Spanish Empire. After the Mexican War of Independence ended in 1821, California became