Bishop Raul Martinez, who led Antique diocese for almost 20 years, dies at 86

Bishop Emeritus Raul Martinez, who headed the Diocese of San Jose de Antique for almost 20 years, passed away at 86.

In a Facebook post, the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) announced that Martinez died on Monday but did not disclose the cause of his passing.

Martinez was ordained bishop at the Immaculate Conception Cathedral in Roxas City in 1983 and led the Diocese of San Jose de Antique until 2002.

He later became resident bishop of Christ the King Parish Greenmeadows in Quezon City.

Martinez obtained his theology degree at the University of Santo Tomas in 1960 and was ordained priest the following year.

In 1986, Martinez became a member of the CBCP Permanent Council and was named chairman of the Episcopal Commission for Non-Believers.

In the wake Mass for Martinez, Cubao Bishop Honesto Ongtioco remembered Martinez for his “simplicity” and “friendliness.”

“He was friendly to everyone, very approachable, very fatherly, and for some a grandfather. Indeed, he was a friend and a shepherd to many,” Ongtioco said in his homily.

“I will always remember him for his genuine simplicity,” Ongtioco said. “I witnessed that his faith in Christ was alive at the very core of his being.”

A funeral mass will be presided over by Manila Archbishop Jose Cardinal Advincula at the Christ the King Main Church on Friday. —Mariel Celine Serquiña/RF, GMA Integrated News