Key facts
- Vatican upheld excommunication of Louisiana deacon Scott Peyton.
- Peyton resigned after a priest molested his son.
- Excommunication cited joining an Anglican congregation as refusal of submission to Pope.
- Peyton's appeal was rejected on technical grounds.
- Peyton intends to appeal the decision.
- The abusive priest, Michael Guidry, remains in the Catholic priesthood.
The Vatican's Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith has upheld the excommunication of Scott Peyton, a Louisiana deacon who resigned from the Catholic Church after his son was sexually abused by a priest. Peyton learned of the decision on Friday from Bishop J Douglas Deshotel of the Lafayette diocese.
The DDF cited Peyton's joining of an Anglican congregation and subsequent social media posts about it as a refusal to submit to the Pope, thus incurring excommunication. The decision was made on technical grounds, rejecting Peyton's appeal.
Peyton, represented by canon attorney Dawn Eden Goldstein, stated his intention to appeal the verdict on Sunday. He expressed disappointment, noting that the diocese seemed to consider his search for a new faith community a greater scandal than the abuse of his child. The abusive priest, Michael Guidry, remains in the Catholic priesthood despite his conviction and imprisonment.