The Diocese of Knoxville marked the feast day of St. Dominic on Monday by reminding people about the Dominican Order’s history in the area.

“Today we celebrate the feast of St. Dominic,” the diocese posted on Facebook. “We are grateful for the Dominican sisters who teach in some of the diocese’s Catholic schools. Here are some in front of St. Mary in Oak Ridge, 1950. The Dominicans have had a presence in East Tennessee for more than 150 years.”

St. Dominic was born into a noble family in Spain in the 12th century. He joined a religious community when he was in his 20s, Britannica says. While traveling abroad with the Bishop of Osmo, Dominic learned that the Church in France was being threatened by Albigensian heretics who were teaching that anything concerning the body - including eating, drinking and procreating - was evil. Dominic and the bishop set out to convert the heretics. To do that, they practiced austerity in their daily lives. This included living in poverty and traveling barefoot.

That practice marked the beginning of Dominic's "evangelical preaching." Dominic converted about 16 heretics, who showed their loyalty by following him. The group established a formal religious order that was devoted to preaching, and Pope Honorius III in 1216 officially recognized the Dominican Order, Britannica continues.

Catholics celebrate St. Dominic's feast day on Aug. 8, every year Franciscan Media says, adding that Dominic is the patron saint of astronomers, as well as of the Dominican Republic.

The Dominican Order today, according to the group’s website, includes friars, nuns, sisters and lay people who hold to St. Dominic's mission of teaching, preaching, studying and praying. Dominican friars are seen to be engaged in campus ministry efforts at universities. They also lead retreats, missions and workshops, serve as chaplains in hospitals and convents and serve as missionaries.