Liberation Theology in Latin America and in Iran: A Truly Transglobal and Transmodern Project

Abstract

This article proposes to carry out a comparative study of Liberation Theology movements in Latin America and Iran. The purpose will be to underline the similarities between these theological movements through the works of Gustavo Gutiérrez, a Peruvian theologian and Ali Shariati, from Iran. We will study their innovative interpretations of the religious concepts of Christianity and Islam, as well as the causes and consequences of these movements in their respective regions in the 1960s-80s. Furthermore we will discuss how these theologians –while grounding their teachings on their religions– utilize Marxist categories to interpret and transform their socio-political realities. The article argues that these movements show significant possibilities of being true transmodern and transnational projects of liberation, based on the theoretical framework proposed by Global South theorists like Enrique Dussel (Philosophy of Liberation).