Des Moines Register knows who to quote on matters canonical

In this case, my father (come to think of it, in all canonical cases he's the guy to quote):

The Catholic Church's decision to grant Steven Sueppel a funeral at St. Mary's Church after he killed his wife and four children on Easter night has left behind an emotional debate among Iowa City-area Catholics and Catholic scholars.

Edward Peters, a professor of Catholic doctrine, or canon law, at Sacred Heart Seminary in Detroit, says Sueppel should not have been given a Catholic funeral.

Sueppel would be what canon law calls a "manifest sinner" because he murdered his wife and four young children before killing himself, Peters said.

He said his interpretation of canon law leads him to conclude that Sueppel should not have been granted a Catholic funeral because doing so creates a "scandal for the faithful."

Of course, canon law is not equivalent to "Catholic Doctrine", as the article claims.

Save yourself from this and other mistakes by adding Dr. Peter's canonlawblog to your blogroll today!