The views of Herrmann, Bultmann, and Barth also manifest the long
tradition of religious recognition that underlines the primacy of
conversion. As some representatives of Protestant orthodoxy, like
König, place the event ofagnitio deibefore their tripartite notion of
faith, we may note that the modern criticism of orthodoxy may to
some extent miss its historical target.
At the same time, the Protestant views of religious recognition
from Spalding to Barth emphasize personal appropriation and faith-
ful recognition. This stress on subjective, existential attachment is a
distinctive feature of modernity. While conversion and new identity
belong to the long tradition of religious recognition, Spalding devel-
ops these features so that they become a gateway to grasp authentic
religion. The primacy of existential attachment is underlined
from Spalding to Barth. When this primacy is grasped and observed,
the object of religious recognition is seen anew. The object can
receive a new status or undergo some other transformation. Since
Schleiermacher, God has increasingly become the recognizing subject
who changes human objects through the performative, downward
acts of justification, adoption, and election.
3.5. Legal Developments
After Fichte and Hegel, various discourses of recognition appear in
jurisprudence, politics, and psychology. The English word continues to
be used in its epistemic sense, meaning the identification based on
known features. While such discourses remain outside the scope of our
study, it is necessary to sketch briefly the most important features of
modern legal discussion. These concern the recognition of states,
organizations, acts, and persons. As we have seen (section 3.2), Fichte’s
discussion already contains several guiding principles related to these.
The recognition of states and organizations in international law is
normally a unilateral act, although a treaty may also include declar-
ations of recognition. The importance of such recognitions stems
from the imperfect nature of international law, since recognitions
are needed to settle international disputes.^238 The recognition of the
(^238) Frowein 2000, 33–4.
164 Recognition and Religion