Can a non-Catholic have a Catholic funeral?

Anyone who was baptized Catholic is eligible to have a public Catholic funeral, provided that doing so would not create a scandal.

But what about those who were not baptized Catholic, but who went to Mass? Or those who were married to a Catholic or had Catholic kids? Can a parish hold a funeral for them if they wish?

The short answer is yes, and it comes from canon law, Fr. Boniface Endorf, O.P., told Aleteia. Fr. Endorf is a Dominican friar and is the pastor at St. Joseph's Catholic Church in Greenwich Village, New York.

In the Code of Canon Law, Canons 1176-1185 concern funerals, eligibility, location, and other customs. Specifically, "Deceased members of the Christian faithful must be given ecclesiastical funerals according to the norm of law," and "Ecclesiastical funerals, by which the Church seeks spiritual support for the deceased, honors their bodies, and at the same time brings the solace of hope to the living, must be celebrated according to the norm of the liturgical laws."

So what about non-Catholics, or people who were not yet baptized?

"You can have a Catholic funeral for a baptized Protestant if there's some reason to think that he was planning on becoming Catholic or desired that," said Fr. Endorf. This could be if the person had attended Mass, or had a Catholic spouse.

In a situation such as a stillbirth, or the death of a child soon after birth and prior to baptism, the Church has special funeral rites, he said.

"Funeral Masses are part of how the Catholic Church cares for members of the Catholic community — both the dead and the living. Most of what the Church thinks about who should have a public funeral flows from that idea," Fr. David Paternostro, S.J., told Aleteia. Fr. Paternostro is a Jesuit priest and is an assistant professor at Creighton University in Omaha.

"So, if someone is unable to receive a Catholic funeral, it is either because they were not members of the community (as with non-Catholic Christians), or because giving them a funeral might give living members of the community the impression that their life was worth imitating (as with people who publicly embrace evil acts)," he said.

The Church's practice on funerals has changed over time, he said.

"In recent years, there has been a growing awareness that a person might not be a full member of the Catholic community for historical reasons, or that a person might do something tragic without choosing the tragedy," he said.

Previously, a person who died by suicide or who was a member of a Protestant denomination and never received into full communion with the Catholic Church would not receive a Catholic funeral, but that practice has been "revisited."

"What remains constant is that we are all in need of God’s mercy, and we should always pray for the dead, even if they do not receive a public funeral," said Fr. Paternostro.