Today we honor St. Gaspar del Bufalo, who founded the Missionaries of the Precious Blood in 1815, in Italy. St. Gaspar started in a small place, called Giano, in the mountainous region of Umbria, with a small group of fellow Missionaries. Like St. Gaspar, they were committed to renewing the Church through their preaching and through action. They were on the move, embracing the life of a missionary. At the urging of St. Gaspar, they also spent time deep in prayer, drawing near to the God who sent them out.
I think a lot about those few who chose to follow St. Gaspar in this new endeavor, forming a religious congregation. What inspired them? What led them to leave their daily routines and established lives to become Missionaries of the Precious Blood, which at the time was more of an idea than an institution?
And how did they come to work together as they built this new community? Was it a smooth road or a rocky path? In my role in leadership in the Missionaries’ United States Province, I spend a lot of time thinking about how people work together, in large or small groups, on committees, in parishes and other ministry settings. We can try to bring the right group together, but often a mysterious chemistry takes over and a group melds into a single unit, individuals all pulling together. Or sometimes it does not.
St. Gaspar helped his small group grow into a Congregation devoted to spreading the message that Jesus has redeemed us through his Precious Blood. Today his Congregation serves in 20 countries around the globe. It was part determination, part fervor, and largely the infusion of God’s grace that made it work. With God’s help, the right leader at the head of a large group of people can make a world of difference. With God’s help, the right leader with just a handful of people can move mountains. With God’s help, either way works.