The term charisma (pl. charismata, adj. charismatic; from the Greek χαρισμα, meaning "favor given" or "gift of grace") has two senses: 1) compelling attractiveness or charm that can inspire devotion in others, 2) a divinely conferred power or talent. For some theological usages the term is rendered charism, with a meaning the same as sense 2. Since the 1950s, the term has become widely used, with varying meanings, in religion, the social sciences, the media, and throughout Western societies. This article describes the theological and personality senses of the definition of charisma, the history of the term, and 21st century uses of both senses in particular sectors of society.

Etymology

The English term charisma is from the Greek χαρισμα, which means "favor given" or "gift of grace." The term and its plural χαρισματα (charismata) derive from χαρις (charis), which means "grace." Some derivatives from that root have similar meanings to the modern sense of personality charisma, such as "filled with attractiveness or charm," "kindness," "to bestow a favor or service," or "to be favored or blessed." Moreover, the ancient Greek dialect widely used in Roman times employed these terms without the connotations found in modern religious usage. Ancient Greeks applied personality charisma to their Gods; for example, attributing charm, beauty, nature, human creativity and/or fertility to goddesses they called Charites (Χάριτες).

Theologians and social scientists have expanded and modified the original Greek meaning into the two distinct senses above. For ease of reference, we will call the first sense personality charisma and the second divinely conferred charisma.

The meaning of charisma has become greatly diffused from its original divinely conferred meaning, and even from the personality charisma meaning in modern English dictionaries. John Potts, who has extensively analyzed the term's history, sums up meanings beneath this diffused common usage.

Contemporary charisma maintains, however, the irreducible character ascribed to it by Weber: it retains a mysterious, elusive quality. Media commentators regularly describe charisma as the 'X-factor'. …The enigmatic character of charisma also suggests a connection – at least to some degree – to the earliest manifestations of charisma as a spiritual gift.

History

Divinely conferred charisma

The Hebrew Bible and the Christian Bible record the development of divinely conferred charisma. In the Hebrew text the idea of charismatic leadership is generally signaled by the use of the noun hen (favor) or the verb hanan (to show favor). The Greek term for charisma (grace or favor), and its root charis (grace) replaced the Hebrew terms in the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible (the 3rd century BC Septuagint). Throughout, "the paradigmatic image of the charismatic hero is the figure who has received God's favor." In other words, divinely conferred charisma applied to highly revered figures.

Thus, Eastern Mediterranean Jews in the 1st century CE had notions of charis and charisma that embraced the range of meanings found in Greek culture and the spiritual meanings from the Hebrew Bible. From this linguistic legacy of fused cultures, in 1 Corinthians, Paul the Apostle introduced the meaning that the Holy Spirit bestowed charism and charismata, "the gift of God's grace," upon individuals or groups. For Paul, "[t]here is a clear distinction between charisma and charis; charisma is the direct result of divine charis or grace."

In the New Testament Epistles, Paul refers to charisma or its plural charismata seven times in 1 Corinthians, written in Koine (or common) Greek around 54 CE. He elaborates on his concepts with six references in Romans (c. 56). He makes 3 individual references in 2 Corinthians (c. 26), 1 Timothy, and 2 Timothy (c. 62 - c. 67). The seventeenth and only other mention of charisma is in 1 Peter.

The gospels, written in the late first century, apply divinely conferred charisma to revered figures. Examples are accounts of Jesus' baptism and of his transfiguration, in which disciples see him as radiant with light, appearing together with Moses and Elijah. Another example is Gabriel's greeting to Mary as "full of grace". In these and other instances early Christians designated certain individuals as possessing "spiritual gifts," and these gifts included "the ability to penetrate the neighbour to the bottom of his heart and spirit and to recognize whether he is dominated by a good or by an evil spirit and the gift to help him to freedom from his demon."

Believers characterized their revered religious figures as having "a higher perfection … a special Charisma." Then, with the establishment of the Christian Church, "the old charismatic gifts and free offerings were transformed into a hierarchical sacerdotal system." The focus on the institution rather than divinely inspired individuals increasingly dominated religious thought and life, and that focus went unchanged for centuries.

Additional changes began in the 17th century when church leaders, notably in the Latin tradition, accented "individual gifts [and] particular talents imparted by God or the Holy Spirit." The 19th century brought an increasing shift in emphasis toward individual and spiritual aspects of charisma; Protestant and some Catholic theologians narrowed the concept to superlative, out-of-the-ordinary, and virtuoso gifts. Simultaneously, the term became alienated from the much wider meaning that early Christians had attached to it. Still, the narrowed term projected back to the earlier period "A systematically reflected and highly differentiated understanding of charisma was often unconsciously infused into the Scriptures and writings of the church fathers, so that these texts were no longer read through the eyes of the authors."

These dialectic meanings influenced notable changes in pentecostalism in the late 19th century, and charismatic movements in some mainline churches in the mid-20th century. The discussion in the 21st Century Religion section explores what charisma means in these and other religious groups.

Secular history

The basis for modern secular usage comes from German sociologist Max Weber (1864–1920). He discovered the term in the work of Rudolf Sohm, a German church historian whose 1892 Kirchenrecht was immediately recognized in Germany as an epoch-making work. It also stimulated a debate between Sohm and leading theologians and religion scholars, which lasted more than twenty years and stimulated a rich polemical literature. The debate and literature had made charisma a popular term when Weber used it in The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism and in his Sociology of Religion. Perhaps because he assumed that readers already understood the idea, Weber's early writings lacked definition or explanation of the concept. Because he applied meanings for charisma similar to Sohm, who had affirmed the purely charismatic nature of early Christianity, Weber's charisma would have coincided with the divinely conferred charisma sense defined above in that

Weber introduced the personality charisma sense when he applied charisma to designate a form of authority. To explain charismatic authority he developed his classic definition:

Charisma is a certain quality of an individual personality by virtue of which he is set apart from ordinary men and treated as endowed with supernatural, superhuman, or at least specifically exceptional powers or qualities. These are such as are not accessible to the ordinary person, but are regarded as of divine origin or as exemplary, and on the basis of them the individual concerned is treated as a leader.

Here Weber extends the concept of charisma beyond supernatural to superhuman and even to exceptional powers and qualities. He then indicates that followers endow the individual with powers, regard these powers as of divine origin or just exemplary, and treat him as a leader. In another passage, Weber emphasizes that "the recognition on the part of those subject to authority" is decisive for the validity of charisma. In other words, charisma can only be that which believers recognize as charismatic in those they treat as such.

Weber died in 1920 leaving "disordered, fragmentary manuscripts without even the guidance of a plan or table of the proposed contents." One unfinished manuscript contained his above quoted definition of charisma. It took over a quarter century for his work to be translated into English. With regard to charisma, Weber's formulations are generally regarded as having revived the concept from its deep theological obscurity. However, even with the admirable translations and prefaces of his entire works, many scholars have found Weber's formulations ambiguous. For the past half-century they have debated the meaning of many Weberian concepts, including the meaning of charisma, the role of followers, and the degree of a supernatural component.

21st century religion

Pentecostal and Charismatic Christianity

The Charismatic Movement is a trend in Christianity distinguished by its belief in the renewal of supernatural gifts and powers.

See also

References

External links

The X-Factors of Success from Psychology Today

Max Weber and Charisma

Charisma by Thomas Robbin in the Encyclopedia of Religion and Society, edited by William H. Swatos: ISBN 0-7619-8956-0

Toward a Theory of the Routinization of Charisma — April 1972

The science of savoir faire

Charismatic Cults on BBC Four in Thinking Allowed 26 January 2005 Wednesday 16.00-16.30 presented Laurie Taylor, press on "Listen Again"

Article: "Moses, Charisma, and Covenant"

The Character of Charisma

"The Charisma Mandate" from The New York Times (February 17, 2008)

Charm school: Scholars unpack the secrets of charisma, and suggest the elusive quality can be taught by Mark Oppenheimer from The Boston Globe, July 20, 2008

Category:Anthropology of religion Category:Charismatic and Pentecostal Christianity Category:Greek loanwords Category:Religious behaviour and experience Category:Social psychology Category:Sociological terms Category:Spiritual gifts Category:Max Weber Category:Religious terminology

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