Cardinal Jaime Sin, the powerbroker at the heart of people power revolts in the Philippines, steps down this week after nearly three decades as Manila's archbishop but will maintain a key role in the country.
Revered for marshalling million-strong protests that drove two presidents from office, the frail 75-year-old prelate was given a lavish tribute on Wednesday at a Roman Catholic shrine that has become the national symbol of "People Power" revolts.
"I am retiring but I am not keeping quiet," Sin said. "You cannot stop me from loving and serving you."
Bishop Gaudencio Rosales -- a 71-year-old advocate against illegal logging and the effects of globalisation on the poor but otherwise little known to most Filipinos -- will be formally installed as Sin's successor on Friday.
Sin was helped by two assistants when he arrived at the packed shrine before he listened to tribute after tribute for his role in the country's political transformation when late dictator Ferdinand Marcos was ousted in 1986.
With an election just six months away, many expect far less politics from the pulpit in this overwhelmingly Roman Catholic country now that Sin is stepping down.
"It's about time," said political commentator Nelson Navarro. "He was at the centre of our political life since 1986. It has been 17 years of social backwardness and political interference."
Navarro criticised the Catholic Church's fierce opposition to divorce, abortion and artificial birth control, which he said had contributed to misery, poverty and corruption in this nation of 82 million people.
DIVINE COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF
But politicians who shared the limelight with Sin during two popular uprisings defended his frequent forays into politics.
"I know a number of Roman Catholics and many Protestants who do not want religion mixed up with politics and, therefore, may not share my deep appreciation and my highest admiration for this man of God," said former Senator Jovito Salonga, a Protestant.
"But Cardinal Sin has a very keen moral sense -- the sense of right and wrong -- which transcends religious barriers and social and political differences."
Former President Fidel Ramos, also a Protestant, gave Sin the credit for the success of the 1986 popular revolt that toppled Marcos, describing the priest as the "divine commander-in-chief".
Corazon Aquino, the widow of Marcos's bitter political rival Benigno Aquino and the country's president after the strongman fled, offered prayers for Sin.
"How truly blessed Filipinos are that God sent Jaime Cardinal Sin to guide us and help us through all of the difficult times," she said.
The Vatican granted Sin's request to retire because of his advanced age and failing health, announcing Rosales as his successor a few days after his 75th birthday on August 31.
Sin was hospitalised briefly in March after suffering a seizure while at prayer. He has a long-standing kidney ailment.
Political analyst Alex Magno said he believed the Catholic Church would remain a potent political force, despite impressions that Rosales had no intention of meddling in national affairs.
Most archbishops of Manila were power players, considering that the clergy played an influential role during the 333 years of Spanish rule in the Philippines, he said.
"The church has been part of the fabric of society, except that Sin articulated it in a more colourful way," Magno told Reuters. "Sin's successor might be less controversial but is expected to respond the same way to periods of crisis."