Sicily Bishop Forbids Church Funerals for Mobsters

A bishop in Sicily has issued an unprecedented decree that says convicted mobsters will be denied a church funeral.

The measure was announced on Saturday by Bishop Antonino Raspanti, during a meeting with Italy’s justice minister, Anna Maria Cancellieri.

Churches in the Diocese of Acireale will refuse to celebrate funerals for mobsters who have been convicted with a final sentence in Italy’s three-tier court system, and who have shown no sign of repentance before death, according to the decree.