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According to The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church, "the custom of having patron saints for churches arose from the practice of building churches over the tombs of martyrs."

In the past patron saints for cities and professions were often chosen not by the hierarchy but simply by the Catholic public's attachment to a particular aspect—real or imaginary—of a saint's life.

Ironically, the immediacy of the Internet itself seems to be ensuring that Isidore will become its patron. He is now featured on at least 1,280 Web sites, most of them mentioning his potential role as Internet patron and some mistakenly declaring he has already been given the job.

Copyright © 2001 ENI.

Internet's proposed saint may prove to be a godsend | While Isidore looks like a sure thing, groups still lobby for alternates — Chicago Tribune (Mar. 5, 2001)

Net gain for saint and sinners | The Church reassesses the 'seedy' image of the Internet in order to recruit computer users as new converts — The Guardian (Feb. 22, 2001)

Saint of Cyber — Peter Sinclair, The New Zealand Herald (Feb. 22, 2001)

Vatican to give Internet its patron saint | A look at St. Isidore — The Times, London (Feb. 10, 2001)

Patron saint of the Internet imminent | Dutch bishop says Vatican ready to announce Saint Isidore of Seville — Ananova (Feb. 4, 2001)

When the saints go logging on — BBC (June 14, 1999)

Britannica.com and The Catholic Encyclopedia also have entries about Isidore.

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March (Web-only) 2001, Vol. 45