The Name of the (Holy) Father

This chapter applies Jacques Lacan’s theory of the four discourses to the papacy of Pope Francis, focusing on two key moments. The first concerns the submission of five dubia by Cardinals questioning Francis’s teaching on revelation, marriage, synodality, ordination, and forgiveness. Their challenge illustrates the hysteric’s discourse, while Francis’s response exemplifies the analyst’s discourse, marked by listening and reframing rather than direct confrontation. The second case examines the Synod on Synodality (2021–2024). Francis initially opened this process in the discourse of the analyst, inviting free speech and critical reflection within the Church. Yet, after the first session, he shifted toward the university and master’s discourses, limiting debate by excluding issues such as women’s ordination and LGBT+ inclusion from the final assembly. The chapter concludes that the papacy cannot sustain the analyst’s position universally; true synodality requires a non-Catholic interlocutor to inhabit the role of analyst.