Is Millenarian Eschatology Necessary?
Yes. But there are two kinds. Historical millenarianism, which in its various forms interprets the millennium according to the present in political or ecclesiastical forms. “Eschatological millenarianism is an expectation of the future in the eschatological context of the end and the new creation of the world. Historical millenarianism, as we have seen, is a religious theory used to legitimate political or ecclesiastical power,” [thus inherently disordered to Moltmann, who unlike Pannenberg is not concerned with ecclesiastic or liturgical issues] “and is exposed to acts of messianic violence and the disappointments of history. Eschatological millenarianism, on the other hand, is a necessary picture of hope in resistance, in suffering, and in the exiles of this world” [the theme and the focus in the whole of Moltmann’s theology]. (192) “Christian theology is not a theology of universal history. It is a historical theology of struggle and hope. It therefore does not teach the secular mil
