MANILA, Philippines—The condition of former President Corazon Aquino has improved but her son, Sen. Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III, conceded that only God knew how long she would remain stable.

The senator said his mother’s blood pressure was “a lot better than previous,” and that he assumed Wednesday that she was okay because his sisters had not called him or sent a text message.

“Will she be stable for a very long time? I think only God will know,” he told reporters at the Senate.

“I would like to emphasize that this is why doctors are monitoring her, because things could change,” he also said at one point.

In various churches, prayers and healing Masses continued to be said for the cancer-stricken heroine of the 1986 Edsa People Power Revolution, which toppled the Ferdinand Marcos dictatorship.

40-hour adoration

The Shrine of Our Lady of Peace on EDSA (Epifanio delos Santos Avenue) will offer a 40-hour collective adoration of the exposed Eucharist, or Quarant’ore. The rites will start at 7 p.m. Thursday with a Mass to be celebrated by Bishop Ted Bacani.

On Aug. 1, a dawn procession with Our Lady of Fatima, another Edsa icon, will be held starting at 5:30 a.m. The closing ceremony will be held on the same day with another Mass, and will be capped by a procession of Our Lady of Edsa.

The Quarant’ore is in honor of the time Jesus spent in the tomb. The devotion started in Milan in 1534, with the Blessed Sacrament displayed continuously for 40 hours during a time of calamity.

The prayer groups supporting the Edsa Shrine and the prayer vigil include the Sacred Land of Asia, Wellspring of Life Community, Marian Movement Cenacle Group, Luminous Cross of Grace, Hijas de Maria and Knights of Malta.

Catholic schools

The 76-year-old Aquino, fondly called Cory, has Stage 4 colon cancer. She has been confined at Makati Medical Center for over a month.

“We ask all our member-schools to offer daily prayers and Masses, to sacrifice and to continue to storm heaven with prayers for perseverance for Cory and our country until the peace of the Lord and the light of truth reign over us again,” said the Catholic Educational Association of the Philippines (CEAP), the biggest organized group of Catholic schools in the country with 1,252 members.

Its statement included this short prayer:

“Lord, grant President Cory peace and grace that she may overcome her illness. We pray for strength for the people of our nation as we look up to the model of strong faith and persevering spirit of true stewardship, our dear President Cory. Bless our leaders and grant them discernment to banish their selfish interests and do what is truly good for the country. Amen.”

The CEAP also urged its member-schools to explain to students the “pivotal role of President Cory in the history of this country.”

“The true meaning of Edsa should not be lost on all of us as we prepare for a crucial transition in the life of our country—the elections in May 2010,” it said.

Marcos Jr. etc.

The late dictator’s son and namesake issued a statement saying his family’s thoughts and prayers were with the Aquinos in this difficult time.

“I know how her family feels because we also went through the same experience with my father,” said Ilocos Norte Rep. Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

“Let’s drop politics on this one and just wish the former President peace in her heart and comfort in her pains. We believe in the power of prayers and that God serves as our best weapon against problems, trials and difficulties in life,” he said.

The dictator died of heart, lung and kidney ailments in 1989. His health began to fail even before he was ousted in 1986.

Other key figures

Key figures of Edsa I who later had a falling-out with Aquino said they were also in prayer.

“I will pray for her. She is in the hands of God,” said Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile, who once served as Aquino’s defense secretary.

Sen. Gregorio “Gringo” Honasan, a former colonel whose Reform the Armed Forces Movement launched several coup attempts against the Aquino administration, told reporters: “We continue to pray for her.”

Sen. Joker Arroyo, who once served as Aquino’s executive secretary, said he was “commiserating in private.”

The House of Representatives sponsored a healing Mass for Aquino Wednesday afternoon. Among those who attended were Cebu Rep. Raul del Mar, Cavite Rep. Elpidio Barzaga and Camarines Norte Rep. Liwayway Vinzons-Chato.

Thanks from the family

Senator Aquino again took the opportunity to express his family’s appreciation for the continued prayers and well wishes for his mother.

He said the family was particularly touched by the get-well-soon cards made by grade school students of two schools.

The cards are displayed on all the walls around the former President’s bed, he said, adding:

“One of the [cards] even has a cutout of my mom’s name. It’s like a pop-up.”

The family is also heartened by the yellow ribbons that have “sprouted” everywhere, Noynoy Aquino said.

He cited the case of a sari-sari (variety) store owner who had asked why yellow ribbons were being put up on his store and, upon being told the purpose, fixed the ribbons’ display.

“We see a lot of people we don’t know, but we really feel they care for our mom and we want to thank them for this,” he said.

Noynoy’s promise

How is he taking the crisis?

The senator admitted that it had been “difficult” but that he had promised his father, the late former Sen. Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino, when he was 13 years old that he would “take care of my mom and sisters.”

“And I have tried to live up to that promise to my father,” he said.

“These are trying times for all of us, and at the same time I’m conflicted because my mother is a stickler for doing what is right and proper,” he added, citing the fact that he had to attend Senate sessions even as his mother lay gravely ill in the hospital.

Noynoy Aquino said his mother had “driven all of us to be the best that we can.”

Indeed, he said, it was not a walk in the park to get his mother’s approval when he first entered politics.

Strength from sisters

“My eldest sister says my mom is very serious whenever she recommends anybody, and the closest to her, the more stringent the criteria,” he said.

Right now, he said, he was drawing strength from his sisters, from his obligations to his parents, from the family’s supporters, and from strangers who were showing how much they cared for their mother.

More praise

Still more praise was aired for Aquino.

At a healing Mass held Tuesday night at St. James Parish church in Ayala-Alabang, Muntinlupa City, Cory Aquino was hailed as “a political figure whose greatest strength is her faith.”

“Alive or close to death, it matters not. Her spirit is infectious,” Msgr. Ernie Joaquin said in his homily.

“She can draw all Filipinos to herself as a dying mother will draw all her children to her bed of pain,” Joaquin also said.

Aquino’s brother, Jose “Peping” Cojuangco, read the prayer of healing at the Mass organized by the Spirit of Edsa Foundation chaired by Cris Carrion, and the Council of Philippine Affairs.

Most of those present wore yellow, Aquino’s signature color when she led street protests against the Marcos dictatorship from 1983 to 1986.

The protests culminated in Marcos’ ouster in February 1986 and Aquino’s rise to power. She was President from 1986 to 1992.

‘Always giving’

At the healing Mass he celebrated at the Manila City Hall Wednesday, Fr. Bel San Luis described Aquino as “always giving, always trying to do something good for the people and the country.”

San Luis recalled meeting Aquino when he was the head of the National Citizens’ Movement for Free Elections in 1986:

“We had an audience with her. We told her about our problems in our area, and she was taking down notes. We were supposed to jot down notes as well, but we realized we didn’t have a pen. She probably noticed our predicament so she gave us her pen. She said, ‘You can use this,’” he said.

“I was struck by the gesture; I couldn’t forget it. It was a very small incident, a very simple experience, but it showed the bigger side of President Aquino’s life. It symbolized her life and her term—she’s very giving and she always strives to do something good for others.

“She recognized that she was just a caretaker President of the country, and she stepped down and became an ordinary citizen when her term ended.

“She was very simple, very humble. The legacy that she has left behind should be emulated.”

Capiz healing Mass

At another healing Mass, this time sponsored by the Capiz provincial government at the Roxas City Metropolitan Cathedral, Rev. Fr. Noel Vincent Abalajon said:

“Cory, the wife, the widow, the mother, the citizen, the Philippine President, is truly the embodiment of our fears and hopes, our struggles and triumphs, our sorrows and joys as Filipinos.

“She may not be the best President, but she was the powerful figure of our fight against injustice and corruption, political suffering and moral decay.” With reports from Dona Pazzibugan, Fe Zamora, Tina G. Santos and Leila B. Salaverria in Manila; Felipe Celino, Inquirer Visayas