The Missionaries of the Precious Blood were founded in Italy in 1815 by St. Gaspar del Bufalo. Gaspar was a small, sickly Roman-born priest who found boundless energy to carry out God's work. A visionary and preacher who had a gift of persuading people to follow his seemingly outlandish dreams, Gaspar secured an abandoned 10th century abbey near Giano, Italy. On August 15, 1815, this became the birthplace of a new society of preachers and missionaries dedicated to the Precious Blood of Jesus.

Gaspar's missionaries worked among the country
people of Italy. They staged parish missions where
they preached day and night, in churches, on street
corners, and anywhere else that people congregated.
When the rural hillside was overrun by roaming
bandits, so troublesome that the Pope himself
threatened to exterminate them, Gaspar went into
their camps and told them about the redeeming
power of the love of Jesus.

Before he died in 1837, Gaspar had preached to thousands of people, and had established mission houses around the Italian countryside. Today, the priests, brothers and lay associates of the Congregation serve in 17 countries around the world.

If you would like to learn more about St Gaspar del Bufalo, his life and writings, Fr. Jeffrey Keyes, C.PP.S., has made available a variety of PDF files on the St Edward Parish Website:  St. Gaspar del Bufalo