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STATE AND RELIGION

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A political system is befitted legitimate when its members are tied together with a strong

belief. Every system of authority stands upon the willingness to obey, and such disposition is not

possible without a belief1. Religion has been long viewed as a decisive factor in legitimacy, but

the modern theories believe in the declining role of religion in public life2. The religious

conviction had an impact on the power dynamics of states in the old times and continued to

influence the legitimacy of modern politics.

The Byzantine Empire and other kingdoms in Europe attempted to enforce laws based on

Christianity, but the church failed to occupy a distinct sphere. On the other hand, Prophet

Muhammad (PBUH) instigated Islam, and it became successful. The only difference between the

two religions was that emperors led Christianity in the Byzantine Empire while the Holy Prophet

of Muslims directed Islam. In the Byzantine Empire, the monarchs controlled the church and the

followers of Christianity divided into two groups. There were frequent battles and conflicts

between the two Christian groups as one sect would not agree with the laws of other. Therefore,

the Christian Church never occupied a distinct sphere. As for Islam, the Prophet Muhammad

(PBUH) founded a religion but he, himself, led the creed and his followers too3. Instead of

letting the emperors control the matters of faith, the Holy Prophet steered the Muslim Empire

himself. Therefore, it gave rise to a religious legitimate political government.

Religions have often given rise to violent conflicts between people of same races,

different races, and different cultures. There have been many instances in the history of the world

when religion became the base of fierce battles. For example, the crusades are an illustrative

1
Barkey, Karen. 2016. "Political Legitimacy and Islam in the Ottoman Empire: Lessons Learned." Reset Dialogues
on Civilizations. July 14.
2
Billings, Dwight B., and Shaunna L. Scott. 1994. "Religion and Political Legitimation." Annual Review of
Sociology 173-202
3
Hamid, Shadi. 2016. "Is Islam ‘Exceptional’?" The Atlantic. June 6.
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example of violence in Christian history4. Not only such acts of violence go unobserved, but

many times people, especially religious scholars, defend and justify these violent acts by

religious explanations. However, the battles and other such violence are not inspired only from

religious views, but there are many other factors in play as well. For example, in many cases

political views, resources, land, and wealth also become the reason for causing a war or battle5. It

must not be ignored, here, that all the religions, both Islam and Christianity, promote peace and

love through their teachings. Still, many fierce battles are known to have caused due to religion

as well. Therefore, we can conclude that religion has a role in armed violence, but necessarily it

is not the only reason for causing a war between people from two different dogmas.

Most of the religions base their belief on the principle that their power flows from God.

Islam and its follower strongly believe in the omnipotence and ultimate authority of God or

Allah6. According to the believers of Islam, Allah or God is the Creator of all humanity and

controls the whole universe. Further, He decides who will go to heaven and is the Master of the

Day of Judgment. In an Islamic political structure, the supreme powers rest by Allah only7.

Christians, too, just like Muslims believe in the supreme powers of God. They also think that

there is life after death where each person is treated according to their actions in the world.

Therefore, both the religions, Islam and Christianity, accept God as the highest authority and

power.

4
Ioffe, Julia. 2016. "If Islam Is a Religion of Violence, So Is Christianity." Foreign Policy. June 14.
5
Cline, Austin. 2018. "When Christianity Is Used to Justify Violence." Thought Co. July 27.
6
Krogt, Christopher van der. 2015. "Who is Allah? Understanding God in Islam." The Conversation. April 13.
7
Ibid.
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Monotheistic religions often make unstable states as they usually try to defend

themselves and offend their enemies8. As it is evident from the history of Muslims and

Christianity, the monotheistic religion followers are generally bent to fight for their honour and

religion and tend to indulge in wars more often than other creeds. Therefore, we can say that

states formed on the basis of monotheistic religions are not very stable as compared to other

liberal states. Furthermore, such states tend to neglect the cultural diversity and are more

interested in their individual benefits9.

Religion has a vital role in deciding the legitimacy of a state; shaping its political views

and culture, and promoting violence amongst its followers. However, it would not be right to

blame religion alone for the battles, wars, and conflicts fought in the name of religion. In many

cases, religion is used to justify the violent act which is wrong ethically and morally. Further,

states based on monotheistic faith are usually unstable as they tend to indulge in fights and wars.

8
Momigliano, Arnaldo. 1986. "The Disadvantages of Monotheism for a Universal State." Classical Philology 285-
297.
9
Ibid.
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Bibliography

Barkey, Karen. 2016. "Political Legitimacy and Islam in the Ottoman Empire: Lessons Learned."

Reset Dialogues on Civilizations. July 14. Accessed October 15, 2018.

https://www.resetdoc.org/story/political-legitimacy-and-islam-in-the-ottoman-empire-

lessons-learned/.

Beyer, Catherine. 2018. "Monotheistic Religions of the World." Thought Co. August 12.

Accessed October 15, 2018. https://www.thoughtco.com/monotheistic-religions-

overview-95935.

Billings, Dwight B., and Shaunna L. Scott. 1994. "Religion and Political Legitimation." Annual

Review of Sociology 173-202. https://www.jstor.org/stable/2083364.

Cline, Austin. 2018. "When Christianity Is Used to Justify Violence." Thought Co. July 27.

Accessed October 15, 2018. https://www.thoughtco.com/christianity-and-violence-

249551.

Hamid, Shadi. 2016. "Is Islam ‘Exceptional’?" The Atlantic. June 6. Accessed October 15, 2018.

https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2016/06/islam-politics-

exceptional/485801/.

Ioffe, Julia. 2016. "If Islam Is a Religion of Violence, So Is Christianity." Foreign Policy. June

14. Accessed October 15, 2018. https://foreignpolicy.com/2016/06/14/if-islam-is-a-

religion-of-violence-so-is-christianity/.
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Krogt, Christopher van der. 2015. "Who is Allah? Understanding God in Islam." The

Conversation. April 13. Accessed October 15, 2018. http://theconversation.com/who-is-

allah-understanding-god-in-islam-39558.

Lindsley, Art. 2018. "What Does the Bible Say about the Role of Government?" Institute for

Faith Works and Economics. January 17. Accessed October 15, 2018.

https://tifwe.org/bible-role-of-government/.

May, Samantha, Erin K. Wilson, Claudia Baumgart-Ochse, and Faiz Sheikh. 2014. "The

Religious as Political and the Political as Religious: Globalisation, Post-Secularism and

the Shifting Boundaries of the Sacred." Politics, Religion & Ideology 331-346.

doi:https://doi.org/10.1080/21567689.2014.948526.

Momigliano, Arnaldo. 1986. "The Disadvantages of Monotheism for a Universal State."

Classical Philology 285-297. https://www.jstor.org/stable/269977.

Triandis, Harry C. 2013. "Toward Understanding Violence in Islam." Acta de Investigación

Psicológica 969-985. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/S2007-4719(13)70946-3.