ABSTRACT
The authors present Lacan’s perspective that religion (particularly the Roman Catholic tradition with which he was most familiar) supplies meaning to human experience and by doing so, blocks the ruptures of the unconscious through the satisfaction of the ego. Lacan underscored the importance of attending to, not solving, complex and inexplicable intrusions of the real in human life. Psychoanalysis as a discipline does not seek to explain, rationalize, or solve, which contrasts with Lacan’s understanding of his religious context that seemed oriented toward these purposes. This chapter poses the question: Does religion in general, and Christianity in particular, inevitably hide the real and cover over the unconscious? The authors’ answer is no, provided that both traditions are engaged in a dialogical way that explores and enhances mutual insight, influence, and impact. Because both Lacanian psychoanalysis and Eastern Orthodox theology share anthropologies that set them apart from their peers, this field is utilized to explicate the ways in which rich, fruitful dialogue may take place between these two perspectives that, in Lacan’s experience, were often at odds.
