a stricter version of the Franciscan Rule of life. He was widely respected for his deep, intuitive understanding of theology and Scripture, and was often sought for counseling. He also had a reputation as a healer of the sick. Combined, these characteristics continued to draw many visitors to him. As he enjoyed cooking, he returned to kitchen duty in his later years. Benedict died at the age of 65 and, it is claimed, on the very day and hour which he had predicted. At the entrance of his cell in the Franciscan friary of St. Mary of Jesus, there is a plaque with the inscription: "This is the cell where Saint Benedict lived", and the dates of his birth and death – 1524 and 1589. Other sources list the year of his birth as 1526. In a New York Times review of the 2012 exhibit, Revealing the African Presence in Renaissance Europe, at the Walters Art Gallery in Baltimore, Maryland, his birth date is given as 1526. Upon his death, King Philip III of Spain ordered the construction of a magnificent tomb to house his remains in the friary church. Veneration Benedict was beatified by Pope Benedict XIV in 1743 and canonized in 1807 by Pope Pius VII. It is claimed that his body was found incorrupt upon exhumation a few years later. Benedict is remembered for his patience and understanding when confronted with racial prejudice and taunts. He was declared a patron saint of African Americans, along with the Dominican lay brother, Martin de Porres. In the United States, at least seven historically Black Catholic parishes bear his name, including but not limited to the following cities: Washington, DC; New York City; Chicago (St. Benedict the African); Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; North Omaha, Nebraska; Winston-Salem, North Carolina; Dayton, Ohio; and, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Capuchin friars of Milwaukee's serve a meal for the homeless six days a week as part of a ministry to reach out to transient, disenfranchised and isolated people. Grambling, Louisiana also has a parish under his patronage, called St. Benedict the Black. The latest church in the United States to be placed under his patronage is the one in Dayton, established in 2003 under the leadership of Fr Francis Tandoh, a priest from Ghana. The parish maintains a ministry to natives of that country, as well as parishioners from two previous parishes merged to form it. St. Benedict the