The Diocese of Memphis on Monday celebrated the feast day of St. Benedict, crediting him for his role in building Christian Monasticism.

“Today, July 11, is the Feast Day of St. Benedict of Nursia, the Sixth-Century Abbot who gave Christian Monasticism its lasting foundation in Western Europe,” the diocese said on Facebook.

The diocese then reminded people that St. Benedict at Auburndale Catholic High School provides students with a learning atmosphere that is permeated with teachings that are along the lines of St. Benedict’s guidance.

St. Benedict of Nursia was born in Italy around the year 480. Britannica says his parents sent him to study in Rome, but city life didn’t sit well with Benedict, who was bothered by the Roman people's lack of moral restraint.

He moved into a cave, Britannica says, where he lived a solitary, spartan life for three years. He became famous for his sanctity, and monks he was acquainted with persuaded him to lead a nearby monastery. There, however, someone attempted to poison him, so he returned to his cave. Though back in isolation, the people who believed in him kept returning to him.

He went on to establish 12 monasteries. “After he had built 12 Monasteries at Subiaco, he moved to Monte Casino, where he founded an Abbey where he wrote his rule and lived until death,” the diocese said in its posting.

Benedict compiled some instructions for religious life, guidelines that have become known as the Rule of Saint Benedict, which is still used to guide religious life centuries later, Catholic.org says. His guide describes the power of rhetoric in spreading the Gospel and emphasizes the importance of reading and meditating about sacred Scripture.

Benedict passed away shortly after his twin sister, St. Scholastica had, Catholic.org says, and Benedict is sometimes depicted with a raven or a bell in artistic renderings.

Benedict is the patron saint of Europe, schoolchildren, monastics, and poisoning, Franciscan Media says, and his feast day is celebrated each year on July 11.