Santa Barbara Pastoral Region

The Santa Barbara Pastoral Region is a pastoral region of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles in the Roman Catholic Church. It covers Santa Barbara and Ventura counties in the State of California, an area with a population in excess of 1.2 million.[1][2] The region has 37 parishes, six high schools, 18 elementary schools, four hospitals, and four Spanish missions, including Mission Santa Barbara and Mission San Buenaventura. The region was created in 1986 as part of a plan by Los Angeles Archbishop Roger Mahony to make church leaders more accessible by dividing the sprawling Los Angeles Archdiocese into five pastoral regions.[3]

The Santa Barbara Pastoral Region has been governed by three bishops since its foundation.[2] The first was Patrick Ziemann, who served from 1986 until 1992,[4][5] and later became involved in sexual and financial scandals.[6] He was followed by Thomas J. Curry who ordained as the region's bishop in 1994,[7] stepping down from the post in 2013 amid allegations that concealed sexual crimes perpetrated by other priests.[8] The third is Robert E. Barron who held the position from 2015 to July, 2022.[1][9]