Retired Philipino Archbishop Oscar Cruz died early Wednesday from coronavirus complications. He is believed to be the 10th Catholic bishop to die of COVID-19 since the outbreak of the global pandemic.

The current archbishop of Lingayen-Dagupan in the Philippines said that Cruz died after “multiple organ failure caused by critical COVID-19 infection”.

Cruz died at Cardinal Santos Medical Center in San Juan City at the age of 85. He had been hospitalised since Aug. 10.

“He was a faithful shepherd. He was a courageous prophet. He was a brilliant canon lawyer … My heart is grateful that in this lifetime I met a great churchman like Archbishop Oscar V. Cruz,” Archbishop Socrates Villegas wrote on Facebook Aug. 26.

Cruz led the Archdiocese of Lingayen-Dagupan for nearly two decades from 1991 until his retirement in 2009. He was also president of the Philippines bishops’ conference from 1994 to 1999.