Zoticus was a 3rd-century

martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...

and

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is c ...

of Comana (also spelled Conana or Comama). Zoticus is known for his opposition to the

Montanist Montanism (), known by its adherents as the New Prophecy, was an early Christian movement of the late 2nd century, later referred to by the name of its founder, Montanus. Montanism held views about the basic tenets of Christian theology simi ...

heresy Heresy is any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs or customs, in particular the accepted beliefs of a church or religious organization. The term is usually used in reference to violations of important religi ...

.Butler, Alban. ''Lives of the Saints'', Vol. VII, 1866
/ref> He died in 204 a

. A life of Zoticus, the ''Vita Zotici'', was written during the reign of Michael IV (1034–41). The town of Saint-Zotique,

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

is named for him, as is Rue St Zotique in Montreal.

Biography

Zoticus of Comana is sometimes identified with Comana in Cappadocia, but other sources dispute this identification, and suggest a Comana in Italy.St. Zoticus
Catholic Online Zoticus is known for his opposition to the

. Sometime in the 3rd century

Bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is c ...

Zoticus and Bishop Julian of Apamea went to a town called

Pepuza Pepuza (or Pepouza, Greek: Πέπουζα) was an ancient town in Phrygia, Asia Minor (in today's Turkish district of Karahallı, Uşak Province, Aegean Region). Coordinates of the central terrasse of the settlement: UTM 35 S 0714926/4253954 (WGS- ...

to exorcize demons from

Maximilla Maximilla was a prophetess and an early advocate of Montanism, a heretical Christian sect founded in the third century A.D. by Montanus. Some scholars believe that Maximilla and Priscilla, another prophet, were actually the co-founders of Montan ...

. While in Papuza they muzzled the followers of Themiso to stop them from spreading falsehood, and Zoticus tried to prove Maximilla why Montanism was wrong. Zoticus' exorcism was stopped by followers of Themiso. Zoticus became a

during the persecution of

Septimius Severus Lucius Septimius Severus (; 11 April 145 – 4 February 211) was Roman emperor from 193 to 211. He was born in Leptis Magna (present-day Al-Khums, Libya) in the Roman province of Africa. As a young man he advanced through the customary suc ...

, around the year 204.

References

204 deaths Italian Roman Catholic saints 3rd-century Christian martyrs 3rd-century Byzantine bishops Year of birth unknown {{Italy-saint-stub