Analyzing and Examining the Possibility of Applying Moltmann’s Theology of Hope in the Doctrine of Shiite Mahdism

“Jürgen Moltmann”, German Protestant theologian, proposed the “theology of hope” in order to solve the problems of Christian theology in the modern era. The “theology of hope” considers man to have an active role in paving the way for the realization of the celestial world in the last days. Due to its emphasis on the practical aspect (praxis), this theology was as influential in shaping political theology as the liberating theology was in the Latin America. The problem is that the possibility of applying Moltmann’s theology of hope should be investigated as a form and a format for the explanation of Mahdism teaching in the modern period. This paper has been carried out with a descriptive-analytic method and by citing library sources. It seems that with a discoursal look to the theology of hope, it is possible to emphasize the practical aspect more than the ideological and theoretical aspect in the Shiite Mahdism doctrine and awaiting the Promised, just as Imam Khomeini’s movement turned the awaiting to an effective discourse and led to the establishment of the Islamic Republic of Iran.