The Bizarre History Of Sin Eaters, People Who Were Hired To Literally Consume The Misdeeds Of The Dead
The Bizarre History Of Sin Eaters, People Who Were Hired To Literally Consume The Misdeeds Of The Dead The tradition of sin eating in Europe dates back at least 250 years, though is likely far older and may even be pagan in origin. But the height of this bizarre practice came during the 18th and 19th centuries in England, possibly as a way to fill the vacuum left by the transition to Protestantism and the banning of the Catholic sacraments and last rites During this time, nearly every village had its own sin eater. And when someone died, their family would place food on the corpse's chest, allowing the sins of the departed to be absorbed into it. Then, the sin eater consumed the meal and transferred the sins to themselves. But even though sin eating was deemed essential work to guarantee salvation for those who could not confess before death, sin eaters themselves were social outcasts because people believed that anyone who willingly took on the sins of another was inherently...