The Roman Catholic Diocese of Stockton is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in the Central Valley and Mother Lode region of California in the United States. It comprises the Counties of Alpine, Calaveras, Mono, San Joaquin, Stanislaus and Tuolumne. Also known as the See of Stockton, it is led by a bishop who pastors the 34 parishes and 12 missions.
The mission statement of the diocese is: "We, the Catholic people of the Diocese of Stockton, transformed by Jesus Christ through Baptism; empowered by the Holy Spirit; nourished by the Eucharist; faithful to the mission of Christ; commit ourselves to be God’s heart of mercy and love, God’s voice of hope and truth, God’s hands of justice and healing to all people."
Originally a part of the Archdiocese of San Francisco and the Diocese of Sacramento, the present-day diocese was established in 1962. The diocese is geographically and ethnically diverse. The majority of the population lives in the San Joaquin Valley. The two major population cities are Stockton and Modesto. The diocese has shown a significant population increase in all counties except Alpine County. The majority of San Joaquin Valley is farming, and there are many migrant camps in which the Church has a presence.
Calaveras, Tuolumne, and Alpine counties are located on the western side of the Sierra Nevada mountain range. Most parishes in these counties date back to the gold rush days. Mono County is on the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada Mountain range and is usually cut off from the rest of the diocese during winter. The parish church located in Mammoth Lakes provides for the spiritual care of vacationers during the winter and summer.
The largest racial/ethnic groups in the Diocese are White and Hispanic. There are also many of Filipino and South East Asian descent. The largest Azorean Portuguese population outside the Azores is found in the Diocese of Stockton. It is estimated that 60% of the diocesan Catholic population is Hispanic. However, this does not imply that Spanish is their first language, only that their heritage is Spanish. The largest Pacific Island community is the Filipino community. Then the next largest ethnic concentration is Vietnamese. The USCCB statement Asian and Pacific Presence lists the Diocese of Stockton as among the top thirty dioceses in the United States with the highest Asian and Pacific Island population. Within the Diocese, Mass is celebrated more than 180 times each Sunday in English, Spanish, Portuguese, Latin and Laotian. Weekday masses are celebrated in these languages and Vietnamese.
Today, the See of Stockton remains a suffragan of the ecclesiastical province of the Archbishop of San Francisco. Its fellow suffragans include the Dioceses of Honolulu, Las Vegas, Oakland, Reno, Sacramento, Salt Lake City, San Jose, Santa Rosa.
Read more about Roman Catholic Diocese Of Stockton: History, Parishes, High Schools, Elementary/Junior High Schools, Active Ministries, Movements, and Orders
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