Venerius | |
|---|---|
| Archbishop of Milan | |
 | |
| Appointed | 400 or 401 AD |
| Term ended | 408 |
| Predecessor | Simplician |
| Successor | Marolus |
| Personal details | |
| Died | May 4, 408 |
| Sainthood | |
| Feast day | May 6 |
| Venerated in | Eastern Orthodox Church Roman Catholic Church |
Venerius (Italian:Venerio) wasArchbishop of Milan from 400 (or 401) to 408. He is honoured as aSaint in theCatholic Church and his feast day is May 6.[1]
Almost nothing is known about the life of Venerius before his election as bishop of Milan. According to the 5th-century historian,Paulinus, Venerius was adeacon and he was present at the death ofAmbrose in 397. Venerius was elected bishop after the death ofSimplician in the winter between 400 and 401. He was already bishop of Milan when he received a request by a provincialsynod held on June 18, 401 atCarthage to send in North Africa some clerics from Milan. One of the clerics sent was actually Paulinus.[2]
Venerius is also known from a letter written to him byPope Anastasius I concerning the condemnation of the ideas of theOrigenists. He is also mentioned in a letter of the same pope toJohn II, Bishop of Jerusalem.[2]
In 404 Venerius, along withPope Innocent I andChromatius,bishop of Aquileia, took a stand in favour ofSt. John Chrysostom who has been unjustly banned fromConstantinople, writing in his favour toHonorius, the Western emperor, who sent this letter to his brother,Arcadius, the Eastern emperor. This intercession, however, availed nothing.[2]
Venerius died on May 4, 408, and he was buried in theChurch of Saint Nazarius and Celsus in Milan.[3] A late tradition, with no historical basis, associates Venerius with the Milan's family of the Oldrati.
| Ancient age |
|
|---|---|
| Genoa period |
|
| Middle Ages |
|
| Modern age |
|
$=considered an intruder by theCatholic Church | |
