CV Churches to Discuss Diocese Reorganization Plan

Castro Valley’s two Catholic Churches have scheduled a meeting this month to discuss sharing resources in response to the Diocese of Oakland’s plan to merge or “cluster” some parishes. 

Father Raphael Zwolenkiewicz, who currently oversees the congregations of Our Lady of Grace and Church of the Transfiguration, has invited members of each parish to a “Catholic Community of Castro Valley” Town Hall meeting on Tuesday, February 18, at 7:00 p.m. The meeting is expected to allow parishioners to voice questions and concerns about the Diocese’s proposed reorganization of some of its churches.

“This is only a preliminary meeting. Nothing has been fully decided or confirmed,” Father Zwolenkiewicz told the Forum. “Bishop Michael C. Barber will make the final decision.” 

In 2021, the Diocese announced a reorganization of some of its churches—known as the Mission Alignment Process or MAP—citing declining Sunday Mass attendance and underutilized parish facilities. The decision was further solidified after the Diocese filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2023 following the passage of California Assembly Bill 218, allowing at least 300 potential juvenile sex abuse-related lawsuits to proceed. 

Prior to the bankruptcy filing, Bishop Barber convened a MAP committee to review all Diocese properties and congregations. Their report showed that some churches should merge, and others would cluster or operate as an inter-parish association. In the first phase, six churches merged into three, including Christ the King of Pleasant Hill with St. Stephen of Walnut Creek in 2022. St. Barnabas in Alameda is expected to merge with St. Joseph. St. Benedict and Divine Mercy in Oakland are also slated to merge. No church closures are planned, according to the Diocese report. 

Under the Diocese’s MAP, Our Lady of Grace (established in 1947) and Church of the Transfiguration (established in 1961) are expected to “cluster.” That’s where two or more parishes remain separate and retain their names but share one or more priests and one administration.  

The Diocese’s MAP committee is expected to share its recommendation based on the bishop's guidelines at the February 18 meeting in Stack Center at Our Lady of Grace.