“A large-scale analysis of this country on a par with Tocqueville . . . an important book. It raises serious questions about our country, makes perceptive observations about our culture, and provokes us to look inside ourselves in a critical, yet constructive, way.”

— Howard Zinn, author of A People’s
History of the United State

Publisher’s Note

Portrait of a Nation in Peril is exactly what we need for this time and place in the history of the United States. We must dare to look at ourselves, our culture, our history.

We must be brave enough to ask ourselves and each other hard questions – How did we get here? Is this really what the United States is supposed to be? Where has our shared vision gone?

The research and analysis Michael presents in Portrait of A Nation in Peril gives all of us the opportunity to reflect on who we are and how we got to this place in our history, and more importantly it gives all of us the insight we need to shape our future.

Portrait of A Nation in Peril holds up a mirror. We must be bold enough to take a look at ourselves because the fate of America is in our hands.

A nation or civilization that has a strong heroic ideal or vision of greatness cannot lose it without itself collapsing. As Americans, we are beginning to lose it. This book argues that we’ ve lost touch with our founding vision, our sense of purpose and direction, resulting in the sharp polarization splitting our nation apart today. We hear much talk about making America great again, but little about what this actually means. Does it mean economically great? Militarily great? Culturally great? Morally great?

Portrait of a Nation in Peril explores our founders’ conception of greatness and their vision for America. Much can be borrowed from them for us to build upon. The world’ s old, us-vs.-them, enemy-oriented heroism derives its identity from fighting an enemy. It requires an adversary and is at a loss without one. A new, citizen-oriented heroism, by contrast, revolves around the citizen’ s responsibility to society and to other citizens. All are citizens of the world. There is a time and place for both kinds of heroism, but if we want a truly civilized world, we must choose the right one for the occasion. The old heroism must psychologically die within us in order for the new one to be born.

Author Spotlight

About Michael Gellert

Connect with Michael on his website – Michael Gellert

Michael Gellert is a Jungian analyst practicing in Los Angeles, California. He treats individuals and couples. He was formerly Director of Training at the C. G. Jung Institute of Los Angeles, where he is currently a research instructor. He has also been a humanities professor at Vanier College, Montreal, and a lecturer in religious studies at Hunter College of the City University of New York. Prior to living in Los Angeles he lived in New York City, where he managed District Council 37’s Personal Service Unit Outreach Program, an employee assistance program for the City of New York. Over the years he has served as a mental health consultant to various organizations, including the University of Southern California and Time magazine.

Michael was born and raised in Montreal. He was educated in rabbinic Judaism, traveled overland from Europe to India at age 19, studied theology at Loyola College in Montreal, and trained with the renowned Zen master Koun Yamada in Japan for two years. He has master’s degrees in religious studies and social work, and studied with Marshall McLuhan at the University of Toronto. He is the author of Modern Mysticism, The Way of the Small, America’s Identity Crisis, The Divine Mind—the latter two each winning a Nautilus Book Award—Far From This Land, and Legacy of Darkness and Light: Our Cultural Icons and Their God Complex.