A Comparative Study of the Principles of "Universality of Religion" in Shiism and Catholic Christianity

"Universality of Religion" means the capacities of a religion for a global government. This topic is one of the most controversial issues among Muslim and Catholic scholars, but has not yet been studied comparatively between Christianity and Islam. Using a descriptive - analytical method, this research deals with the similarities and differences between Shiism and Catholicism in the principles of universality of religion. In terms of the traditional evidence of universality and immortality, the foundations of the universality of religion are the same in Catholic Christianity and Shiism. In both, there are mentions of the universality of the holy book; however, in Christianity, there are contradictory remarks attributed to Jesus Christ, whereas in Shiism, all the foundations of universality are quite consistent. In Shiism, the foundations of universality are rational and based on Quranic verses and traditions, but in Christianity, the foundations of the universality of religion are not entirely consistent, but sometimes in contradiction. It is worth mentioning that some foundations are special to Shiism, and Christianity is deprived of these foundations.