(Catholic too here) 1/ there's a huge difference between what happens during a confession, and what happens during a psychotherapy session, as well about what

(Catholic too here) 1/ there's a huge difference between what happens during a confession, and what happens during a psychotherapy session, as well about what you are to discuss, as well as how you are to understand, and work on your issues. Different worldviews, different outcomes sought, different remediations. You may explore and find common grounds between the notions of sin and human limitations/wounds/imperfection and psychological suffering, and between absolution/reconciliation and behavioural change, emotional processing, but those are still very specific, different things, that have their own names for good reasons. That's why you may do both: confession + psychotherapy. Freud was certainly influenced by, because very critical of religion he understood more as an illusion. Saying he copied/replaced it seems a bit far fetched. 2/ People and humanity existed long before the Church instituted these sacraments around the XIIth century. Sharing burdens, seeking guidance, finding closure, penance, identifying, naming and processing emotions is as old as... humanity. Greek philosophical schools and secret cults. Pre-antiquity cults. Eastern meditation traditions. The Church did not invent it, psychotherapy did not invent it. Both shaped it in specific ways.