/lit/ - Literature

>>15355505
>Catholicism made me mentally ill
You were already ill, your illness just fed off your confused understanding of Catholicism.
I had a similar experience in another denomination between 13-15 and became an atheist for 6 years, though I was never obese or totally friendless.

First of all, if your Christianity is amplifying your mental illness, you're doing it wrong.

>Eventually I became so obsessed with my own sinfulness that I despaired of salvation and seriously wanted to commit suicide.
You are told that salvation cannot be earned. Every man is a sinner deserving of death and can only be saved by grace, through Christ's sacrifice. You are told to have hope and joy, not least because of that fact. Fearing your capacity to be saved due to sin is an Old Covenant mindset. Christ died to free you from the Old Covenant. If you're worried about faith v works, your understanding is lacking. Works proceedeth from faith. You cannot earn salvation by works. Works can small or large. Merely setting a good example by (a) being Christian and/or (b) behaving better than the average heathen is a work. You do not need to run around working for every charity you can find. The example of works in James is simply giving a brother or sister who lacks clothes or food that you come across IRL, food and clothes (provided you are able). This not something hard to do, nor something that many people would hesitate to do.
Despair is a sin. When you find yourself in such a thought pattern, your reaction should not be to use prayer to flagellate yourself, but to pray for the thought pattern to go away and develop a true and healthy understanding of your faith. Accept God's forgiveness.

>I half-remembered a conversation where I said something pro-life, and was half-sure that one person in the conversation went on to have an abortion. So I was convinced I'd basically facilitated an abortion and needed absolution from the bishop in the state capital.
You are taught that people have free will. Therefore the person is responsible for their actions, not you.
Even if we humor the incredulous notion that your pro-life comment performed reverse-psychology on them and pushed them over the edge, that is not your problem. Your intention was to prevent abortion. Intention is the crucial variable both in secular law and Christianity. If someone gets an abortion because someone they disliked was pro-life, that's on them - not the pro-lifer.
>"finally I'm free of sin! At least for now!"
You are taught that you will never be free of sin until you exit your fleshly body. You have to accept that and move on. Simply attempt to sin less over time.

You (and me) were the classic example of the seed that fell on rocky ground, sprang up quickly then withered for lack of soil. Fix your soil.

Finally, contrary to your anecdote, the average Christian is healthier, thinner, and less depressed than the average heathen. Pic related.