The Patron Saint Of The 'net?

Pope John Paul II at one time was expected to name the patron saint of Internet users and computer programmers.

Vatican has confirmed that St. Isidore of Seville, was nominated a few years ago and is a leading contender to be the saintly guardian of cyberspace.

St. Isidore is attributed with writing the world's first encyclopaedia, known as Etymologia. Written more than 1,400 years ago, it was a 20-volume collection of writings on subjects ranging from art, medicine, history and theology to mathematics, literature, agriculture, war and mineralogy.  It was considered, at the time, "the collection of all knowledge".

Spanish religious groups, among others, designated their countryman as a "protector" of the World Wide Web in 1999. Because his life's work ended up in a categorized database, an ancestor of today's Internet, he seems a natural choice for many. 

The Holy See has yet to make a final decision, leaving the field open to other candidates. He is up against St. Paul, the Archangel Gabriel, and St. Anthony of Padua, whom many of the prayerful turn to when they have lost something.

There is also San Pedro Regalado, a 15th-century global navigator who is believed to have appeared in two places at once. For some, he would be an appropriate guardian for the cybersurfer.

Despite the fast-paced and unparalleled force of the Internet the Vatican endeavours to keep up. Back in 1996, the Vatican launched its own Web site, www.vatican.va, which publishes church documents, papal speeches, news updates, and interactive information on the Vatican. The servers hosting the site site are named after its own saintly watchdogs, the archangels Raphael, Michael, and Gabriel.

Pope John Paul II first ventured into cyberspace in 1998 when 1 billion Internet users were able to hear him recite his Sunday Angelus prayers. It is now possible to check this site to see these each week as well as the regular Wednesday audiences.  Pope Benedict XVI follows in John Paul II's digital footprints by publishing his email address benedictxvi@vatican.va.