Charisma: The Gift of Grace, and How It Has Been Taken Away from Us

From a profoundly influential social theorist comes a posthumously published analysis of the deepest level of crisis in our culture.

“A compelling diagnosis of our condition.” —The Wall Street Journal

According to Rieff, the contemporary notion of charisma—the personal magnetism of political leaders or movie stars—is a tragic misunderstanding of a profoundly important concept. Charisma originally meant religious grace and authority transferred through divine inspiration, before it evolved in...