Charisma Quotes

“In a world without meaningful authority, all "acts" are coercive.”
― Philip Rieff, Charisma: The Gift of Grace, and How It Has Been Taken Away from Us

“Holy terror is rather fear of oneself, fear of oneself and in the world. It is also fear of punishment. Without this necessary fear, charisma is not possible. To live without this high fear is to be terror oneself, a monster. And yet to be monstrous has become our ambition, for it is our ambition to live without fear. All holy terror is gone. The interdicts have no power. This is the real death of God and of our own humanity. It is out of sheer terror that charisma develops. We live in terror, but never in holy terror.”
― Philip Rieff, Charisma: The Gift of Grace, and How It Has Been Taken Away from Us

“Under a credal order, there can be no struggle between self and authority. Where there is not this supreme confidence in authority--or, what amounts to the same thing, where there is no confidence in a supreme authority--the individual will lack confidence in himself. Without such supreme confidence, the individual might drop out and not take the risk of death in battle [...] Self-confidence is inseparable from submission to the credal order, and through that order, to the supreme authority expressed in that order [...] The conformity of action in mass organization is anti-credal. Deep individuality cannot exist except in relation to the highest authority. No inner discipline can operate without a charismatic institution, nor can such an institution survive without that supreme authority from a relation to which self-confidence derives. Without an authority deeply installed, there is no foundation for individuality. Self-confidence thus expresses submission to supreme authority [...] Released from the constraints of charismatic authority, Western culture can engage freely in its own destruction.”
― Philip Rieff, Charisma: The Gift of Grace, and How It Has Been Taken Away from Us