In a world where religious identities are often framed as private convictions or sources of conflict, a growing body of scholarship is insisting they have always been central to the architecture of international order itself. This is the premise behind “Before Recognition: How the Politics of Religion Shaped the International Order,” the focus of a recent event in King’s College London‘s RCIR Speaker Book Series. Bringing together historians,political theorists,and international relations scholars,the discussion probed how struggles over religious authority and legitimacy long preceded – and helped define – the modern state system and its familiar norms of sovereignty,secularism,and recognition. Far from being a residual or symbolic force,religion emerges here as a formative power in global politics,challenging conventional narratives about how our contemporary international landscape came to be.
Exploring the RCIR Speaker Book Series at Kings College London and its Focus on Religion and Global Order
Hosted by the Research Center in International Relations (RCIR),this curated book series at King’s College London has become a key forum for interrogating how belief systems shape geopolitical realities.Rather than treating religion as a marginal or purely domestic concern, the series showcases works that reveal its central role in the making of borders, alliances and legal norms. Each event pairs authors with scholars and practitioners to unpack the past, legal and diplomatic dimensions of faith in world politics, inviting audiences to probe uncomfortable questions about power, sovereignty and recognition. Within this context, Before Recognition: How the Politics of Religion Shaped the International Order is positioned not just as a contribution to intellectual debate, but as a lens for re-reading the foundations of modern global governance.
The program highlights recurring themes that cut across cases, regions and traditions, creating a comparative conversation that resonates well beyond the academy:
- Religion as infrastructure for early diplomatic networks, legal categories and hierarchies of “civilised” versus “non-civilised” polities.
- Recognition and exclusion in international law, where confessional identity frequently enough steadfast who was granted sovereign status.
- Colonial encounters in which missionary projects, theological disputes and imperial strategy became tightly intertwined.
- Contemporary flashpoints where religious narratives continue to inform interventions, sanctions and peacebuilding agendas.
| Session Theme | Key Question |
|---|---|
| Religious Borders | How did confessional lines map onto early state boundaries? |
| Legal Recognition | Who was denied sovereignty on religious grounds? |
| Empire & Missions | Where did evangelisation blur into governance? |
| Postcolonial Orders | Which religious legacies still frame today’s crises? |
Unpacking Before Recognition and the Historical Politics of Religion in International Relations
Drawing on archival vignettes and diplomatic correspondence, the book traces how religious ideas quietly set the terms of what could-and could not-be recognized as “international.” Confessional categories shaped who counted as a legitimate sovereign, how borders were drawn, and which communities were relegated to the margins as “domestic” or “spiritual” issues.Rather than treating faith as mere background culture, the narrative shows it as a structuring force that informed the language of treaties, the choreography of envoys, and even the cartography of empire. This historical lens reveals a landscape in which ecclesiastical debates and doctrinal disputes left fingerprints on institutions that are today presented as secular and neutral.
The event at King’s College London invites audiences to reconsider familiar milestones in International Relations by foregrounding the religious logics that were once taken for granted and now lie obscured beneath legal formulas. Through this lens,the standard story of state recognition is unsettled: instead of a linear march toward modern sovereignty,we encounter a contested arena in which theologians,missionaries,and church jurists sat-often invisibly-alongside princes and diplomats. Attendees can expect a discussion that connects archival detail to contemporary policy questions, including:
- Hidden genealogies of “secular” diplomatic norms
- Religious criteria behind inclusion and exclusion in international society
- Continuities between early modern faith politics and present-day recognition struggles
| Key Theme | Historical Insight |
| Legitimacy | Confessional identity as a precondition for sovereignty |
| Law | Canon and natural law shaping treaty language |
| Empire | Missionary agendas behind territorial expansion |
How Religious Traditions and Power Dynamics Shaped the Modern International Order
Far from being a secular by-product of Enlightenment rationality, the contemporary system of states was forged through centuries of religious contestation and doctrinal negotiation. Competing empires translated their confessional claims into legal categories such as “civilised,” “protectorate,” and “minority,” producing a hierarchy that still echoes in today’s diplomatic language. Missionaries, papal envoys, and reformist theologians helped draw boundaries between the “inside” and “outside” of international society, shaping who could be recognised as sovereign and who remained perpetually tutored, supervised or “not yet ready” for independence. These decisions did not simply mirror spiritual beliefs; they crystallised into treaties, mandates and borders that structured global politics long after their original religious justifications faded.
Within this evolving landscape, religious authority frequently worked in tandem with imperial ambition, creating a layered map of power that privileged some communities and marginalised others. Compacts over religious freedom were frequently enough less about protecting conscience and more about defining which faiths could safely be accommodated within the global order. This legacy can be traced in:
- Diplomatic rituals that still borrow from confessional ceremonies and liturgies.
- Legal categories distinguishing “majority” and “minority” faiths in post-colonial constitutions.
- Recognition practices that subtly reproduce older hierarchies of “tolerated” and “suspect” religions.
| Historical Layer | Religious Dynamic | Lasting Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Early modern empires | Confessional rivalry | Segregated spheres of influence |
| Colonial expansion | Missionary governance | Religious-legal status for local communities |
| Decolonisation | Nation-building theologies | Faith-infused constitutional orders |
Policy Lessons and Academic Recommendations for Rethinking Religion in Global Governance
Drawing on the book’s archival insights, emerging policy thinking urges institutions to treat religion not as a side-issue but as a structuring force in international norms, legal categories and diplomatic routines. This means moving beyond ad hoc “faith engagement” units toward re-examining how refugee law,minority rights or counter-terrorism frameworks encode older Christian,secular and imperial assumptions. Policymakers and practitioners can begin by revising training curricula for diplomats, peacebuilders and humanitarian actors to include the historical politics of religious recognition, while embedding context-specific religious literacy into risk assessments, mediation toolkits and human rights reporting.
- Recalibrate mandates so that global governance bodies critically review how their founding charters frame religion and belief.
- Invest in co-production of knowledge with scholars, faith-based organisations and secular advocacy groups.
- Prioritise comparative research on how different religious traditions have shaped sovereignty, borders and minority regimes.
- Support early-career networks that link political theology, international law and diplomatic history.
| Policy Focus | Academic Input |
|---|---|
| Peacebuilding & mediation | Historical case studies on inter-religious diplomacy |
| Human rights regimes | Research on how “religious freedom” was legally codified |
| Migration & asylum | Analyses of religious criteria in refugee recognition |
| Global governance reform | Theoretical work on post-secular and decolonial approaches |
For universities,the book’s arguments encourage rethinking how international relations and law are taught,moving away from a neat secular-religious split and toward a genealogical reading of core concepts such as “tolerance”,”minority”,and “civilisation”. Embedding this scholarship within public policy schools and diplomatic academies-through joint degrees, practitioner workshops and embedded research fellowships-can reshape how future decision-makers identify and navigate religious dynamics in crises.By situating everyday policy decisions within a longer history of religious categorisation, academics can definitely help institutions avoid repeating past exclusions and design governance frameworks that are more empirically grounded, normatively clear and politically accountable.
Closing Remarks
As the RCIR Speaker Book Series continues to spotlight works that unsettle familiar narratives, Before Recognition: How the Politics of Religion Shaped the International Order offers more than a historical case study; it invites a reassessment of how power, belief and legitimacy intersect today.
By tracing the religious undercurrents of past diplomatic settlements, the discussion at King’s College London underscored a central message: religion has never simply been a private matter, but a force woven into the very fabric of international norms and institutions.
For policymakers, scholars and students alike, the book-and the conversation it sparked-serves as a reminder that understanding global politics requires looking beyond the visible architecture of states and treaties, to the deeper ideological foundations on which they rest. As future sessions in the series unfold, this critical lens on the politics of religion will remain integral to debates about the past, present and possible futures of the international order.
