As Venezuela mourns its dead following two devastating earthquakes priests have told a Catholic charity that the Church is often the only source of hope.

Father Daniel Acosta, who lost both his home and friends that night, told Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN): “So many people, so many friendships gone. It hurts badly when you realize that somebody you knew your whole life has gone, after years of sharing everything with them.”

The parish priest of Tarmas added: “Feelings are very mixed. We are here to accompany, to counsel and to support those who have suffered human losses, but also the many who have lost their jobs.

The priest was speaking to a delegation from ACN visiting La Guaira Diocese, one of the most badly affected by the 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude tremors of 24th June.

The parish of St. Oscar Romero, in Ciudad Chavez, had a population of 22,500 people but now a huge number have died or are missing.

Fr. Alfredo Bustamante, the parish priest, told ACN: “This was a young parish, but it has been practically destroyed. Around 80 percent of the faithful have died. 

“We lost entire families, grandparents, parents, children and grandchildren. Only four members of our choir survived, and I lost four of my altar servers. It has been hell.”

When ACN visited nearby Caraballeda, Mass was being celebrated in the parish of Our Lady of Candelaria.

 Fr. Laudence Betancourt told ACN that before the earthquake the church was under construction and not yet being used for daily Mass.

But now they have five times more faithful coming to seek consolation at the church which is open from 7:00am to 7:00pm. 

Next to the altar, 13 square wooden boxes sat on two tables draped in violet. They contained the ashes of bodies extracted from the rubble days earlier, which their families had taken there for a memorial service.

Bishop Pablo Modesto pointed to one box containing the ashes of a young girl who was an altar server and carried his crozier during the Nativity of St John the Baptist, shortly before the earthquake. 

During his sermon, the bishop spoke about the miracle of surviving.

He later learned the noise had come from the collapse of the five buildings next to the seminary. 

He and others managed to get out. Several walls collapsed, but none of the sixteen seminarians suffered serious injury. 

The bishop added: “But in the end, it’s the miracle of why we made it but others didn’t. It’s difficult to understand, but these are things we need to ponder in our hearts – like Mary. 

“And to realize that if God gave us the gift of life – and it was a gift – it is so that we can live in service to others and not just give up. The question is not why I am alive, but what for.”