This is a word taken from the lexicon of fundamentalist protestants.
When you read statements like this:
Convoking Vatican II was a personal decision of John XXIII. He may have thought God was telling him to call it, but who knows? He has no special charism that guarantees he would recognize such a decision as coming from the Holy Ghost with theological certitude.
Ask yourself one question; "could a protestant happily sign off on this statement?". If the answer is "yes", then pause for a moment and think.
How does Marra know what special charisms John XXIII had? Perhaps Marra himself has a special charism that enables him to judge the Pope's charisms.
Furthermore, Marra likes to make statements such as: "And we Catholics are never obliged to believe that a given command, or given decision of anyone, including the Pope, is necessarily that of the Holy Ghost."
OK. Key word; "necessarily". There is a big difference between this, however, and saying that a given command or decision is definitely not that of the Holy Ghost, which is what Marra wants to say and what in fact is said all day, every day, by those in the traditionalist movement.
The idea that "only when the Church invokes its infallible authority are we compelled to pay attention, the rest of the time my opinion is as good as the Pope's" is a seriously flawed one and it opens the door to exactly the sort of contestation that surrounds the Pope's work and teaching today. This is protestantism disguised as the keeping of tradition.
Sorry, Dr. Marra. The Pope does have a special charism to guide the Barque of Peter, which you don't.
Who the dickens is William Marra anyway? Apart from a guy with an internet connection just like me?
Who the dickens is William Marra anyway?
First of all, Marra was not a traditionalist. Secondly, who are you to determine what somebody "wants to say". Are you omniscient?
"Dr. William A. Marra was born in Jersey City, New Jersey on February 20, 1928 of Italian immigrant parents. He grew up in Jersey City, but attended the Jesuit-run Regis High School in New York City. He went to college at the University of Detroit School of Engineering also run by the Jesuits. After college he attended graduate school at Fordham University. After his release from the military, in 1952, he began a teaching career at Fordham University that spanned nearly four decades. At Fordham he met the man he would later call the greatest influence on my life - Dietrich von Hildebrand."
"Prompted by concerns over the emerging practice of sex-education in both public and parochial schools, in 1968-69, he began a second career as a lecturer. He initially spoke to groups dedicated to fighting abuses in local schools. He also founded alternative private schools, the most notable being the Holy Innocents schools, a small chain of parent-managed primary schools. Dr. Marra served as vice-president of Catholics United for the Faith*. He founded the Roman Forum Lecture Series which often featured his friend von Hildebrand as its speaker. In addition, Dr. Marra often lectured on such varied topics as evolution, liturgy, philosophy, and seminary education."
"In later years Dr. Marra expanded his lectures to include various topics related to the condition of the Catholic Church with a special emphasis on home schooling and parental rights. He authored and co-authored numerous articles, as well as published a work in philosophy, Happiness and Christian Hope."
"Dr. Marra appeared on Mother Angelica's EWTN Network, and spoke to numerous groups of religious and clergy, including Mother Angelica's own order. He was returning from a series of seminars given in Alabama when he became ill and died from a stroke on December 12, 1998."
*From C.U.F.F.'s mission statement:
Catholics United for the Faith is an international lay apostolate founded in 1968 by H. Lyman Stebbins to support, defend, and advance the efforts of the Teaching Church in accord with the teachings of the Second Vatican Council.