Vatican -- What's the relationship ...

Vatican -- What's the relationship between the Sacrifice of the Mass and the Church? The question is almost impertinent because the relationship is likewise intimate and complete that the ecclesiastical authority without the Eucharist is simply unthinkable. [i]pontifex maximus[/i] John Paul sums it up in the first opinion of his 14th encyclical, Ecclesia de Eucharistia: "The house of god draws her life from the Eucharist."

The Encyclical was signed by dint of the Pope during the Mass of the Last evening meal April 17, 2003.

The following is a summary.

The Eucharistic Sacrifice, "the source and summit of the Christian life," contains the Church's entire spiritual wealth: