MANILA, Philippines?The Philippines? first woman President received a prolonged standing ovation from the throng of mourners at Manila Cathedral who celebrated her life and work in restoring democracy to the country.

?Tita Cory, I know you can hear me. You have to go now. God has called you back home,? Balanga Bishop Socrates Villegas, a close friend of the Aquinos, said at the Requiem Mass at Manila Cathedral.

?We who are still here on earth are not ready to say goodbye. We will never meet a woman as great as you for a very long time. We will miss you,? Villegas said.

?Rest now, rest in peace Tita Cory. Thank you, Tita Cory. Thank you very much for fighting for us. Thank you for teaching us how to live and die for others,? the bishop said.

The Mass was concelebrated by more than 100 bishops and priests, including Apostolic Nuncio Edward Joseph Adams and Manila Archbishop Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales, with Villegas as the main celebrant.

RP?s one true queen

Paraphrasing a seminarian he had talked to, Fr. Catalino Arevalo, the Aquinos? longtime spiritual adviser, said the public grieving over Aquino?s death showed how the people regarded the former President.

?Perhaps she was the only true queen our people has ever had,? he said. ?And she was queen because we knew she truly held our hearts in the gentleness and the greatness of our own,? he added.

Arevalo said it was Kris Aquino who asked him to deliver the homily because her mother had wanted him to do it.

?It had been so hard to do what you asked,? the Jesuit said near the end of his homily in which he praised the former President?s selflessness, faith and love for country.

?What a great gift God has given to our people, in giving Cory to us ... Thank you Father for your gift to us, Cory Aquino. We give her back to you. We give her with hearts of thanksgiving and with breaking hearts,? Arevalo said.

With his voice breaking, he concluded: ?You gave us a gift, the likes of which we shall never know again. ?Salamat po (Thank you) Tita Cory. Mahal na mahal namin kayo (We love you so much).?

Standing ovation

For the second time during the homily, the audience in the packed cathedral applauded and gave a standing ovation for almost two minutes.

It was learned that Arevalo wrote down his homily in eight pages of yellow pad, while Villegas was able to type and print out his commendation for Aquino on a computer.

An hour before the funeral Mass started at 9 a.m., the cathedral, which has a 2,000-seating capacity, was already filled with family members, friends, public officials, dignitaries, nuns and civil society activists.

Organizers added more seats on both sides of the cathedral but it was still standing room only.

Some priests who could not be seated at the altar stayed at the right side of the altar.

Truth, purity, beauty

Arevalo said the public outpouring of grief for Aquino was to be expected. ?They call it Cory magic. It was just truth, purity and beauty,? he said.

He said Aquino?s priority was ?always God, our country and people, and then family.?

More than once Aquino had confided to him that when life painted her in a corner, she turned to God. ?I knew He never abandoned me,? Arevalo quoted the former President as telling him.

Her rosary never left her hands during her cancer ordeal, the priest said.

Painting for a priest

Arevalo said Aquino had given him one of her paintings, one that showed seven crosses amid multicolored roses.

He said the former President explained that the seven crosses represented the seven months and seven weeks that her late husband, Sen. Benigno ?Ninoy? Aquino Jr., was imprisoned, and the seven coup d?etat attempts that she faced as President.

Arevalo said Aquino had written him that ?crosses and roses make my life more meaningful. I cannot complain.?

When he thanked Aquino?s children for sharing their parents, the audience applauded.

Harvest fruits

Villegas said it was now time for Aquino to ?harvest the rich fruits of your toil on earth.?

?You are now truly free. You are now fully happy. Move on to heaven and be with your beloved Ninoy forever. Heaven is where the two of you will die no longer,? he said.

Aquino became a widow at 50 after her husband was assassinated on Aug. 21, 1983, upon his arrival in Manila from a three-year exile in the United States.

The 26-year period from the assassination to the former President?s death from colon cancer on Saturday covered crucial moments in Philippine history that saw democracy restored, but only to be threatened on a number of occasions.

Villegas thanked Aquino ?for being our light during our darkest hours? and ?for being our strength when we were afraid.?

?There is darkness in our land because you are gone. But we know, we have enough light within us because you have shared with us your fire,? said Villegas, whom Kris Aquino said family members would be indebted to for the rest of their lives for alleviating their mother?s pain in her final days in the hospital.

?We are not ready to live without you. It will take a long while to start again without you but move on to heaven, President Cory,? Villegas added.

Mourners in the cathedral?estimated at over 2,000?gave Aquino a standing ovation as her casket was being led out.

Color of love

The people who gathered outside the cathedral chanted ?Cory! Cory!? while flashing her trademark ?Laban? (Fight) sign.

A sea of yellow shirts, placards, arm and headbands, and flaglets brought back memories of that moment in recent history when Aquino, then a mere housewife, helped usher in a new era of Philippine democracy.

Aquino was given military honors outside the cathedral before her remains were brought to Manila Memorial Park in Parañaque City to join those of her late husband.

?Thank you for teaching us to stand up for freedom and to preserve democracy no matter the cost,? Villegas said.

?You gave us a new meaning for yellow, the color of your love for your country and her people.?

Aquino?s interment?the climax of a brief but deeply profound memorial service that began shortly after her death on Aug. 1?gathered the who?s who in Philippine politics, business, entertainment and the religious sector.

East Timor president

Among those in attendance were East Timor President Jose Ramos Horta, former Presidents Fidel Ramos and Joseph Estrada, Vice President Noli de Castro, and members of the diplomatic corps.

Ramos-Horta found himself a seat away from Indonesian Foreign Minister Wassan Wirajuda. East Timor achieved independence from Indonesia after a bloody civil war. Horta left the cathedral before the 9 a.m. Mass started.

Estrada came with his wife, former Sen. Luisa Ejercito, and son, Sen. Jinggoy Estrada.

Also in attendance were Senators Aquilino Pimentel Jr., Joker Arroyo, Manuel Villar, Manuel ?Mar? Roxas II, Loren Legarda, Jamby Madrigal, Ramon ?Bong? Revilla Jr., Alan Peter Cayetano, Pia Cayetano and Edgardo Angara.

Palace representatives

Malacañang was represented by Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita, Foreign Secretary Alberto Romulo and Public Works Secretary Hermogenes Ebdane.

The presence of show biz personalities gave the occasion a semblance of a variety show.

Also seen among the audience were business magnate Fernando Zobel de Ayala, businessman Raul Concepcion, Rodolfo Lozada Jr., former Senators Joey Lina, Sergio ?Serge? Osmeña III, Agapito ?Butz? Aquino and Tessie Aquino-Oreta, Chair Bayani Fernando of the Metro Manila Development Authority, former Central Bank Governor Jose Cuisia, Pampanga Gov. Ed Panlilio and Makati Rep. Teddyboy Locsin.