Bishop Robert Morlino, 71, of the Madison Diocese is in serious condition Saturday night after an apparent heart attack.(Photo: Madison Diocese)

Bishop Robert Morlino, Bishop of the Diocese of Madison, remained hospitalized Saturday night as a result of an apparent heart attack earlier in the week.

"We had hope and hope, but given the medical realities, our hope is a miracle at this point," said Brent King, director of communications for the Diocese of Madison. "For the moment, our calling is for people's prayers."

A prayer vigil was held Saturday night in the diocese, King said.

According to the diocese, the 71-year-old bishop suffered a "cardiac event" Wednesday during a doctor's appointment. The bishop asked that news of his heart attack not be released for several days, to allow people to focus on Thanksgiving and not on his health. In one initial statement on Friday night, the prognosis seemed favorable and he was resting in an undisclosed hospital.

On Saturday night, however, the diocese issued a second statement that the bishop's situation had worsened. A Facebook message from the diocese, attributed to the Vicar General, Mgr. James Bartylla, added: "I would ask you, besides the prayers for a miracle, to pray that, if and when the time comes, the bishop will receive the grace of a happy death and may soon look at the face. of our God The vision that will not disappoint. "

Morlino, known for his frank positions in the conservative wing of the Roman Catholic Church, has been bishop at Madison for 15 years.

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