The month of July traditionally honors the Most Precious Blood of Jesus. It is the blood of Christ, the Lamb of God, which cleanses from sin—therefore the Church developed a devotion to Jesus' physical blood and its mystical power, just as it did for His Sacred Heart from which His blood poured out on the Cross. The Precious Blood of Jesus courses through the Church spiritually, giving eternal life to the Body of Christ through the sacraments. Many saints had a devotion to the Precious Blood of Jesus, especially St. Catherine of Siena. Devotion to the Precious Blood spread widely through the preaching of Saint Gaspar del Bufalo, who was a 19th-century priest and the founder of the Missionaries of the Precious Blood. This devotion was later approved and recommended by the Holy See. The feast day of the Most Precious Blood of Jesus is July 1st.