Updated 4.30pm, adds Curia statement
Archbishop Charles Scicluna has thanked well-wishers as he recovers from a gallbladder intervention, held yesterday in a Chile hospital.
A heartfelt “Thank you” to all those who have kindly expressed their support and generously offered their prayers as I continue in my recovery. God bless! (Photo with Maltese Missionary in Chile, Fr Henry Balzan, and with Bishop +Celestino of Copiapó) pic.twitter.com/lqD0NOCDRg
— Bishop CJ Scicluna (@BishopScicluna) February 22, 2018
The Curia said Mgr Scicluna is recovering well after he had his gallbladder removed at a hospital in Santiago.
It is expected that the recovery time at the hospital will take between 48 and 72 hours.
On Thursday afternoon, the Church in Malta and Gozo expressed solidarity with Archbishop Scicluna and encouraged the faithful to continue to pray for him during his recovery, "that he may recover fully to continue serving Christ and the Church with complete dedication".
Mgr Scicluna is in Chile looking into accusations that a bishop covered up crimes against minors. He arrived on Monday and started hearing victims' testimony on Tuesday.
Before his trip to Chile, Mgr Scicluna heard testimony in New York from a witness in the case against Bishop Juan Barros, who is accused by several men of covering up sexual abuse of minors by his mentor, Father Fernando Karadima.
The Karadima case has gripped Chile, and several groups in the country protested Pope Francis' decision to appoint Barros bishop of Osorno in 2015.
Mgr Scicluna had been due to hear testimony from victims until his scheduled departure from Chile on Friday. A spokesman for the Episcopal Conference, Jaime Coiro, said Mgr Scicluna would be replaced for the rest of the interviews by Monsignor Jordi Bertomeu, a Spanish priest, at the request of Pope Francis.
"As far as we can see, Monsignor Scicluna and Father Bertomeu are a fairly close team and work with the same hand. So it seems there is no change," said Jose Murillo, one of Karadima's accusers.
"It's very gratifying and in a certain sense healing that people from the church are finally inviting us to be heard," he added.