I used to post stuff from his blog, calling him the old lefty bishop, not as a criticism but as a complement, because he did not follow the party line of the liberation theology types, but worked for issues that affected the average Filipino...against corruption that was destroying the Philippines, including gambling, casinos, drugs, divorce, and crooked politicians, including all those good politicians whose corruption got overlooked because they opposed contraception.
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| Retired Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Oscar Cruz Manila Bulletin |
And the press loved him, because he would comment on issues that other bishops preferred to stay silent about, but also because he could explain things in language that ordinary folks could understand.
One favorite story that I remember was when he was sued for libel.
During the reign of the lovely President Arroyo, there was a party to celebrate the birthday of the First Husband....sponsored by companies etc. And instead of hiring professional waiters/waitresses, the companies had their lovely employees volunteer to do this for free.
The bishop wrote a blistering blogpost condemning this, since it exploited these poor girls., but mainly because (according to unverified rumors) the party could be a way to coverup gifts to Gentleman Mike, who by some rumors was the one to go to if you wanted a favor from his wife.
Well. A few of the lovely ladies promptly sued him for libel, saying the blogpost implied they were prostitutes, and took him to court. (we have strict libel laws here). He lost the court case, but ended up being fined a small amount of money...
But he continued to condemn corruption in his blog, but using hints and quoting others, which is how the regular reporters write here, figuring their readers can read between the lines, but makes it hard for outsiders like myself to figure out what is really going on.
The good bishop's blog posts stopped 2 or 3 tears ago and he has not been active recently.
An example of a good bishop.
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