Biography
Vendemianus of Bithynia
About Vendemianus of Bithynia
Vendemianus of Bithynia is remembered as a hermit who followed the teaching of Auxentius. His received life places him on Mount Oxia, near Chalcedon, where he made his home in the rocky retreat associated with his teacher.
The tradition describes forty-two years of prayer and fasting there. It also attributes healings to him and tells of spiritual struggles; these belong to the devotional account of his life. The Orthodox Church in America gives his death as about 512 and commemorates him on February 1.
The University of Balamand’s hagiographic catalogue records him under the Latin name Bendimianus and the Greek name Βενεδιμιανός. Its Arabic manuscript entry preserves the tradition of a disciple of Auxentius who lived in retreat for forty-two years. These notices establish a remembered monastic identity, but provide little detail about his personal life.
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