PCOO on late Archbishop Oscar Cruz: May his lessons bring optimism during pandemic

The Presidential Communications Operations Office on Saturday (PCOO) joined the Catholic community in mourning the passing of Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Emeritus Oscar Cruz.

According to the PCOO, Cruz passed away due to multiple organ failure caused by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). He died on Friday at the age of 85.

“Archbishop Cruz was a good friend and a mentor. He was someone who was always a source of good news,” PCOO Secretary Martin Andanar said in a statement.

The secretary said that Cruz was “instrumental” in fulfilling the obligation of the Catholics Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines “in strengthening and furthering the fight of all Filipino Catholics.”

“May his spiritual lessons and remain amongst the faithful and be a source of strength and optimism, during our collective fight and recovery against COVID-19,” he said.

“We pray for the eternal repose of the soul of Archbishop Cruz,” he added.

Cruz served as the auxiliary bishop of Manila from 1976 until he was appointed Archbishop of San Fernando, Pampanga in 1978 and Archbishop of Lingayen-Dagupan in 1991. -MDM, GMA News