WITCHY WEDNESDAY: Sin Eaters

Liz Ramos, under the supervision of Carrot Cake the cat, shares one of history’s most unique death and funeral rituals.

Throughout history, humanity has seen vast amounts of death and funeral rituals, each as unique and special as the last. One unique ritual was the sin eating, and the use of sin eaters in the community.

Originating in the 17th century, families in England, Ireland, and Wales would call upon the village sin eater when a loved one passed. The sin eater would arrive at the home, where they would be sat with the deceased’s body and given food and drink, often bread and ale that was sat upon the deceased’s chest, and some coins for their work. The bread and ale was considered to have absorbed the sins of the deceased, which needed to be removed so that their soul was free to enter Heaven. Once presented with the food and drink, the sin eater would be left in solitude with the deceased to consume the meal and absorb the sins. After they were finished, the sin eater would proclaim the soul of the deceased was peaceful and able to enter Heaven sin-free. In some cases, the sin eater was covered in ash and soot and beaten with sticks as they left the home.

Typically, a sin eater was a poor person who was an outcast and lived on the outskirts of town for their profession. They were avoided like the Plague, and not sought after unless someone died. These people typically only made a sixpence per house visit, though sometimes more was provided depending on the wealth of the family they visited or the severity of the sins. Because they did bidding on behalf of the deceased, many considered them possessed, evil, or working with dark magic/witchcraft. Villagers would not look them in the eyes so as to not have misfortune thrust upon them.

 As time went on, larger meals or items like “funeral wine” and “funeral cakes” would be provided to them as the meal provided over the deceased. The practice of offering funeral cakes and wines moved from being a custom reserved only for the sin eater, and instead offered to funeral goers and visitors of the family. This eventually evolved into the custom of serving food and drink to guests at a funeral that we have come to recognize today. Many funerals still serve foods and drinks like wine, beer, artisanal breads, finger sandwiches, cakes, etc.

The last known sin eater was a man named Richard Munslow, who passed away in 1906. Mr Munslow, unlike most sin eaters, was considered wealthy during his life, and was a well known farmer in his community. It is believed he took up sin eating to aid suffering villagers. In 2010, the community of Ratlinghope, England raised funds under the leadership of Reverend Norman Norris to repair Mr Munslow’s grave. This has since been restored to order.

The practice of sin eating, while different from current practices, led to current aspects of funeral services that we know today. It is always amazing to see how humanity has carried death and veneration practices throughout our time here on Earth.

Elizabeth Ramos is a magic practitioner who specializes in nature focused, healing, protective, and ancestral magics. She is a Reiki Master-Teacher and lives with her husband and their several Feline Leukemia Positive kitties in Upstate New York.

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