Roman Catholic Diocese of Oran
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Oran is a church district in northwestern Algeria, part of the ecclesiastical province of Algiers. It was established on 25 July 1866, when it was split from the Diocese of Algiers. The diocese covers about 56,000 square kilometers and lies near the border with Morocco. It serves a population of around 9.8 million people, of whom about 1,500 are Catholics.
The diocese has 6 parishes and follows the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church. The cathedral is Sainte-Marie (St. Mary’s Cathedral) in Oran. There are 2 diocesan priests and 8 priests from religious orders serving the diocese.
The current bishop is Davide Carraro, of the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions (PIME). The metropolitan archbishop of the province is Jean-Paul Vesco.
A brief history: In medieval times the area had several bishoprics, and during Spanish rule Oran was under the Archbishop of Toledo. After Algeria gained independence in 1962, and especially during the civil conflict of the 1990s, the Catholic community greatly shrank. In 1996, Bishop Pierre Claverie of Oran and a Muslim assistant were killed in a bombing at the bishop’s residence.
The bishop’s seat is the Cathedral of Saint Mary in Oran.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 20:12 (CET).