Charisma has come to be understood as a special gift or talent possessed by celebrities--artists, athletes, political leaders--a quality that makes them objects of universal appeal or attraction. Sociologist Rieff explores the evolution of this compelling concept within Judeo-Christian culture, from the covenant between God and the Israelites: charisma--religious grace and authority--was given to the Old Testament prophets, and embodied by Jesus. Rieff shows how St. Paul transformed charisma into a form of social organization, how it was reworked by Protestant theologians, and, finally, how Max Weber redefined charisma as a secular political concept. In emptying charisma of its religious meaning, the modern perception is stripped of moral considerations. Invoking Kierkegaard, Weber, Kafka, Nietzsche, and Freud, Rieff argues that without morality, the gift of grace becomes indistinguishable from the gift of evil, devolving into a license to destroy in the name of ideology--part of the deepest level of crisis in our culture.--From publisher description.