Religion and International Relations: A Critical Outlook

The present article tries to look at the nexus between religion and international relations in the contemporary world. In his analysis, the existing institutionalized concepts and analytical tools of the orthodox and dominant theories of international relations can hardly provide an objective understanding of this nexus, particularly the quite significant political developments during the past several decades in various parts of the world. He ascribes such a failure mainly to the cultural context and content of such theories. Furthermore, he considers the very topic of the relationship between religion and international relations as an inappropriate abstract result of the impact of the Iranian Revolution on regional and international equations, and hence, on the current international relations discipline. Viewed as such, the author undertakes to look into the nexus with a view to providing a sound framework for understanding and analysis. To this end, he tries to caution against undue reliance on the limited value and relevance of un-experienced thought and instead vouch for the value, relevance, and utility of un-thought experience. He concludes that the latter approach deserves to be accorded top priority in future research agenda.