Author Archives: Ron Conte

Sexual Slavery and Sexual Sins

Posted on 24 September 2011 by Ron Conte

When grave sins become socially acceptable, they cease to be recognized as sins. It then becomes much more difficult for the individual conscience — especially one not guided by the Magisterium — to perceive that the grave sin is immoral. … Continue reading →

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Natural Law and the Catholic Faith

Posted on 22 September 2011 by Ron Conte

There are three pillars of truth in the Roman Catholic Faith: 1. Tradition 2. Scripture 3. Magisterium The Magisterium (the living teaching office of the Church) teaches from Tradition and Scripture. All the teachings of the Magisterium are found, explicitly … Continue reading →

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Predestination and the Universal Salvific Will of God

Posted on 18 September 2011 by Ron Conte

We can consider, as a hypothetical, what other plans of salvation God might have chosen. He might have chosen not to create humanity, or not to create anything. He might have chosen not to allow Adam and Eve to procreate … Continue reading →

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Illegal Immigration and Slavery

Posted on 11 September 2011 by Ron Conte

legality versus morality Immigration from one nation to another is not intrinsically evil. The Holy Family immigrated to Egypt from the Holy Land. The Apostles immigrated to various distant nations to spread the Gospel. The faithful have often, throughout the … Continue reading →

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Fr. Z. on the Penance controversy

Posted on 8 September 2011 by Ron Conte

Here is Fr. Z.’s post on whether or not the penance is necessary to the validity of the Sacrament of Confession: Am I forgiven…?. He teaches the same position that I have been arguing: “You are forgiven your sins even … Continue reading →

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Roman Catholic Voting Ethics Revisited

Posted on 6 September 2011 by Ron Conte

I’ve written on this topic before, but with the elections in the U.S. Presidential primary drawing nearer, I thought it would be good to revisit Catholic teaching on voting. Does the Catholic Church have any definitive teachings on voting? Yes. … Continue reading →

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Guilty murderer or innocent victim? (On duress and morality)

Posted on 4 September 2011 by Ron Conte

There was a story in the news recently about a young woman who was a soldier in the Libyan military. During the rebellion, she was forced to kill captured rebels. These were not killings during battle. The rebels were individually … Continue reading →

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More on the Penance Controversy

Posted on 2 September 2011 by Ron Conte

Has Fr. Ryan Erlenbush changed his theological position on the validity of Confession and on the claimed necessity of accepting the particular penance assigned by the confessor? It is difficult to tell. First, there was this post in April of … Continue reading →

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The canonization of Christopher West’s theology of the body

Posted on 2 September 2011 by Ron Conte

When I compare what Pope John Paul II said in his theology of the body lecture series to what Christopher West teaches on the same subject, the two are not at all the same. John Paul’s theology is deeply philosophical … Continue reading →

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El Paso priest’s ad: the truth about homosexuality

Posted on 1 September 2011 by Ron Conte

This gallery contains 4 photos.

Michael Rodriguez of San Juan Bautista Catholic Church in El Paso, Texas, wrote a four-part advertisement, published in the El Paso Times, on the teaching of the Catholic Church about homosexuality. Here is a link to an article in the … Continue reading →

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Reply to Fr. Ryan’s Reconsiderations

Posted on 31 August 2011 by Ron Conte

Here is a link to Fr. Ryan’s post entitled ‘Reconsiderations’. This article discusses that post as well as Fr. Ryan’s writings in general. SYSTEMATIC ERRORS Fr. Ryan’s approach to theology includes a number of methodological errors: 1. There is no … Continue reading →

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The Only Unforgivable Sin

Posted on 28 August 2011 by Ron Conte

This article is on the topic of sin and salvation. According to the teachings of Jesus Christ in the Gospels, there is only one unforgivable sin, and therefore there is only one way to end up in Hell. All other … Continue reading →

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