REVOLUTIONS, ALLAH, AND THE MODERN STATE

Revolutions have transformed not only political institutions but also the relationship betweenreligious authority, individual belief, and state sovereignty. Yet these transformations have notfollowed a single historical trajectory. In some cases, revolutionary movements limitedestablished religious institutions while protecting individual religious practice; in others, theypromoted state atheism or incorporated religious jurisprudence into the constitutional structureof the state. This article compares five historical cases—England, the United States, France,Soviet Russia, and Iran—to examine how revolutionary change reshaped the relationshipbetween religion and political power. It distinguishes personal belief in Allah, institutionalreligion, secularization, constitutional religious liberty, state-sponsored atheism, and thepolitical institutionalization of religious authority. Using a comparative historical andconstitutional approach, the study identifies differences in the sources of political legitimacy andin the legal position of religious institutions across the five cases. The analysis suggests thatrevolution does not necessarily eliminate religion from public life. Rather, it can redistributereligious authority, redefine the boundaries of state power, restrict religious practice, protectfreedom of conscience, or establish new forms of religious governance. The central argument isthat the political consequences of revolution must be assessed by distinguishing thetransformation of religious institutions from the persistence of individual faith and the legalguarantees afforded to conscience