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Cardinal Baldassare Reina, vicar of the Diocese of Rome, has announced that the pope’s diocese will join an Italian bishops’ conference initiative to hold a national collection for Venezuelan earthquake victims.

Reina said in a July 13 letter to priests that the Roman Church “wishes to join in this gesture of communion and charity, so that Christian communities may tangibly demonstrate their solidarity with their brothers and sisters who have seen their homes destroyed, lost their loved ones, and are forced to live in conditions of extreme precariousness.”

The earthquakes have so far left 4,734 dead, 16,740 injured, almost 1,000 buildings partially or fully destroyed, and 17,907 homeless, with numbers being updated almost daily. Diplomatic and Church sources told The Pillar they fear the final death toll could be around 20,000 to 30,000, or even higher, with nearly 30,000 people still missing.

Reina’s letter came after the Italian bishops’ conference announced July 9 that a nationwide collection would be held at Sunday Masses across Italy July 26.

In the announcement, Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, president of the Italian bishops’ conference said the collection was “a concrete way to show solidarity with

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