Bishops of Peru pray for victims of earthquake that leaves at least 5 dead

Peruʼs bishops offered prayers and expressed their solidarity with the victims of an earthquake that struck Saturday night in the Junín region — located in the countryʼs central Andean zone — leaving at least five people dead, more than twenty injured, and hundreds affected.

The earthquake, which occurred around 9:00 p.m., was centered in the district of Chongos Bajo, in the Chupaca province of the Junín region — situated in Peruʼs central Andes, some 193 miles east of Lima — according to the National Civil Defense Institute (INDECI, by its Spanish acronym).

“We share in the grief of the families mourning their loved ones, offering our prayers for the eternal rest of the deceased, and we ask the Lord to grant everyone strength, comfort, and hope,” the bishops stated in the aftermath of the disaster.

“We express our spiritual closeness to all those affected, to those who have lost their homes, and to those generously participating in rescue, care, and relief efforts,” said Bishop Carlos García Camader, president of the Peruvian Bishops Conference.

After encouraging Peruvians to show solidarity with those affected, the bishops urge them not to lose hope and pray “that the…