The Diocese of Pensacola-Tallahassee celebrated the feast day of Pope St. Leo the Great Nov. 10 with an observance of St. Leo's achievements as pope and a prayer to the saint.

“Today is the Feast of Pope St. Leo the Great," the diocese posted to Facebook Nov. 10.  "According to Pope Benedict XVI, Pope Leo’s papacy 'was undoubtedly one of the most important in the Church’s history'.”  

The post notes that St. Leo "was the first pope to have been called “the Great” because of his unwavering dedication to caring for the flock of Christ and his wise administrative decisions." It lists his accomplishments controlling heresies, promoting truth and creating peace at times of doctrinal controversy, among others.

"Pope St. Leo the Great, please pray for us!” the Diocese of Pensacola-Tallahassee posted on Facebook. 

Leo was elevated to the papacy in 440 A.D. According to his biography by the Crossroads Initiative, Leo was instrumental is persuading Attila the Hun and later the Vandals to spare Rome. During his papacy, Leo fought to control the heresies of Pelagianism (the assertion that humans can rely on their free will, not God, to lead moral lives, according to Brittanica), and Manichaeism (a heresy that rejects divine mystery and states everything can be explained by reason, as defined by New Advent).

Franciscan Media attributes Leo's elevation to sainthood to "the spiritual depth with which he approached the pastoral care of his people," which inspired sermons so spiritually profound, they addressed the everyday concerns of his congregations and are still referenced today. One of the sermons is used in the Office of Readings on Christmas, according to the group's website.

Leo was designated a Doctor of the Church in 1754 by Pope Benedict XIV, one of only 36 so honored in the Church's history. The title Doctor of the Church can only be conferred by a pope and is given to someone who has “holiness that is truly outstanding, even among saints”; “depth of doctrinal insight”; and “an extensive body of writings which the church can recommend as an expression of the authentic and life-giving Catholic Tradition,” according to Crossroads Initiative.