-Caveat Lector- From: Yahoo! News Technology Headlines http://dailynews.yahoo.com/headlines/tc/story.html?s=v/nm/19990121/tc/millenn ium_1.html Thursday January 21 11:06 AM ET Vatican Praying For Bug-Free Millennium By Philip Pullella VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - The Vatican, which is praying to exorcise any bugs in its celebrations of the year 2000, has unveiled a high-tech plan to help pilgrims usher in Christianity's Third Millennium. Among the novelties of travel to the Eternal City will be a prepaid ``pilgrim's card'' visitors can use for restaurants and hotels and to book visits to the Vatican and other holy sites. The card, with a memory chip, is one of the services being prepared by organizers who have turned to computers to deal with the invasion of the millennium, when millions of people are expected to travel to Rome. It will help visitors avoid carrying too much cash in a city notorious for pickpockets in some places, particularly the bus connecting the main train station to St. Peter's Square. Vatican and Italian officials preparing for the millennium told a news conference the card will include information on the pilgrim's identity, hotels where reservations have been made, travel and tourism plans and pertinent medical information. The card can be used for services including city transport, telephone calls, restaurants and even insurance policies. Francesco Silvano, a member of the Central Committee for the Great Jubilee of the Year 2000, a joint Vatican-Italian group, said the decision to use the card was ``courageous.'' He said the committee estimated some 10 million would be printed. Catholic Church and Italian officials are making elaborate plans to house and transport the millions of pilgrims. Those not able to stay in Rome will travel to towns as far away as the Venice area some 375 miles from the capital and be taken by train or plane to Rome and the Vatican for a day. UP TO 25 MILLION TOURISTS PREDICTED Estimates of the number of pilgrims who will visit Rome in 2000 run as high as 25 million, five times as many as a normal year when central Rome seems swamped by camera-laden hordes. The church's millennium celebrations begin Dec. 24 of this year and end Jan. 6, 2001. Nearly 60,000 volunteers will be recruited to help pilgrims around the city, officials say. Organization of the millennium celebrations will be coordinated via the Internet by the Vatican, Italian authorities and 171 national millennium committees. During the 54 weeks of official celebrations, Pope John Paul II will deliver a blessing every day to crowds in St. Peter's Square. The 78-year-old pontiff hopes to lead the church into the millennium despite his failing health. The Vatican has planned 29 ``Jubilee Days'' according to themes and professions. There will be Jubilee Days for children, artists, prisoners, teachers, scientists, athletes, politicians, workers, union members and reporters. Chief Vatican spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls said the Vatican expected at least 10,000 journalists to travel to Rome at various times to cover events. One significant date in the Jubilee calendar is March 8, 2000, the ``Day of Request for Pardon.'' On that day the Catholic Church and its faithful are expected to ask for forgiveness for past errors, including contempt for Jews and heretics. One Jubilee Day will be dedicated to an inter-religious service at Rome's Colosseum on May 7, 2000, for ``new martyrs,'' some of whom were not Catholics. Vatican officials say possible candidates to be commemorated in the service include U.S. civil rights leader Martin Luther King, assassinated in 1968. Rome city officials have been racing against the clock to prepare for the celebrations and hundreds of construction projects are under way on roads and buildings. The construction has created havoc in many areas of the capital as exasperated residents have had to cope with changes in traffic directions. DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance—not soapboxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory', with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credeence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. 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