ZENO, bishop of VERONA, saint. – Ecclesiastical writer of the 4th century. Of African origin, from Mauretania or more probably from Numidia, he completed his studies in rhetoric at Carthage, as is deduced from the Sermons attributed to him.
The title *Tractatus*, by which manuscript tradition has handed down the Sermons, has led to his being considered a bishop, since Zeno’s homilies were delivered on occasions when it fell to the bishop to address the faithful, such as the dedication of a basilica, the conferral of Baptism, or during the Easter liturgy. The residence of Zeno in Italy and his holding of the episcopal see of Verona were already circumscribed to the 4th century by Flavio Biondo (1482) and St. Bernardino of Siena (c. 1490). Modern writers have confirmed this opinion with arguments drawn from the Sermons: 1) modes of expression common to other writers of the 4th century, especially Lactantius and St. Hilary of Poitiers; 2) the heresies that Zeno combats, such as those of Arius, Audius, and Helvidius, etc.; 3) descriptions of barbarian incursions; 4) hyperbolic assertions that the Christian religion already occupies the whole world; 5) the observation that the basilica he built appeared too small for the throng of the faithful on the day of its dedication.
The constant Veronese tradition places Zeno in the eighth position in the series of bishops. From the letter of St. Ambrose to Siagrius, Zeno’s third successor, it is concluded that he was a contemporary of the great Doctor of the Church of Milan. Seeking to define more precisely the chronological date of his episcopate, the brothers Pietro and Girolamo Ballerini, who in 1739 published the first edition of the Sermons, circumscribed it between 362 and 380, and later P. Monceaux between 8 December 362 and 12 April 371 or 372.
Zeno is not to be reckoned among the martyrs, as a foreign tradition would have it, beginning with St. Gregory the Great (Dialogues, III, 19). The local tradition of the 8th century rightly states that he died in a time of peace.
Considering the esteem in which Zeno was held by his contemporaries and posterity, it is surprising that St. Jerome, St. Isidore of Seville, and Gennadius of Marseille make no mention of him; nor can one explain the neglect shown by St. Ambrose, Petronius, one of Zeno’s successors, and St. Gregory the Great regarding his literary activity. The first witness to Zeno as a writer is Ratherius, bishop of Verona in the 10th century, who cites him three times in the sermon *De Juda et Thamar*. At the beginning of the 14th century, John, sacristan of the church of Verona, in his *Historia Imperialis*, records Zeno’s name in the eighth position in the episcopal series of that city and recalls several of his Sermons. Through the aforementioned John, around the middle of the same century, the nobleman de Natalibus (v.) indicate in his *Catalogus Sanctorum* 76 of Zeno’s works. Knowledge of Zeno’s literary activity does not seem to have crossed the boundaries of the Church for which the Sermons were written. A confirmation of this is provided by the manuscript tradition preserved in the *Codex Remensis* of 770–75, written for the Church of Verona but donated by Hincmar of Reims around 840 to the Library of Saint-Remi. The codex contains 103 Sermons, of which the Ballerini recognized only 93: 16 longer and 77 shorter, rather like outlines. In the Sermons, Zeno conducts a strenuous struggle against dying paganism, Arianism, and the disorders of the *infallitistae* within his Church. As an orator, he demonstrates good rhetorical preparation, but his language reveals the influence of African authors who preceded him.
His theological doctrine offers fine testimony to the Trinity and to parology. The Sermons of Zeno are a very rich source for the study of Christian antiquity, both in liturgical manifestations and in the constitution of communities.
The Roman Martyrology commemorates the deposition of Zeno on 12 April as a martyr in an improper sense, and his episcopal consecration on 8 December, originally the date of the dedication of the church of St. Zeno (cf. *Martyrologium Romanum*, pp. 135, 537; V. Fainelli, *Codice diplomatico Veronese*, I, Venice 1940, no. 74, pp. 92–94).