Saint of the Day – 4 August – Saint Agabius of Verona (Died c350) Bishop, Confessor

Saint of the Day – 4 August – Saint Agabius of Verona (Died c350) Bishop, Confessor – the Ninth Bishop of Verona, Italy. His birth date and place are unknown but he died in c350 in Verona, of natural causes. Also known as – Agabio, Agapio, Agapito. Agabius was the Bishop of the Diocese of Verona who lived in the 4th Century. The name Agabius is of Greek origin and derives from the verb “agapao” to love.

We know very little about our Saint today. Our only certain knowledge is that he was buried in the Church of St Proculus and when the Church was suppressed on 28 September 1806, his remains were moved to the crypt of the Basilica of St Zeno, the Cathedral Church of Verona.

The Martyrology of the Veronese Church states: “Saint Agabius of Verona, Bishop of the same City, who, excelling in piety to God and gentleness of manners, he of all virtues, of great faith … and of liberality to all the poor, left behind him examples to the … Bishops.” (The gaps are due to the Italian translation which makes little sense).

Another clarification on this holy Bishop is made by Msgr Dario Cervato in his recent work “Verona Agiografica” where he states: “some said he was a native of Caesarea in Palestine, where he was the Bishop, successor of Teotemius and then transferred to Verona but this is unsupported information.”