{"product_id":"the-sin-eater-barbara-burgess-9798248374106","title":"The Sin Eater: A Short Story","description":"\u003cp\u003eSin Eating is an ancient custom.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe first sin eaters are believed to have lived in the 1500s.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eLegend says Richard Munslow, who died in 1906 in Shropshire, England, was the last known sin eater. He is buried at St. Margaret's Church, Ratlinghope. He was not poor but a wealthy farmer.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSome sin eaters received a meagre sum. Perhaps Richard Munslow gained wealth partly by sin eating.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTradition has it that when a person dies, a cake is made. While the cake is still hot, it is laid on the chest of the deceased, and as it cools, it is supposed to absorb the sins of the dead person. The sin eater then comes along and eats the cake, and thus eats the sins of the dead person, who then goes to the afterlife with a clean soul, and does not wander aimlessly as a ghost and haunt the village or its inhabitants.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBread is often used instead of cake.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSin eaters lived alone, like hermits. No one wanted to come into contact with them as they were thought to be 'full of sins' and 'mad'.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis tradition may have originated in Wales and the Shires, such as Gloucestershire, and some believe Scotland.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWelsh, Scottish, and other folk then journeyed to the Americas, where they carried on their family traditions.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eCould it be that, as we feast after a funeral, we are continuing the tradition of the sin eater?\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBrandon was only ten when that hideous thing happened. He never thought he'd ever see anything like it and he remembered it for the rest of his life.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Barbara Burgess\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9798248374106\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Independently Published\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 02\/21\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 34\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.10lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.00h x 5.00w x 0.07d","brand":"Barbara Burgess","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":49172491501823,"sku":"9798248374106","price":6.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/the-sin-eater-barbara-burgess-9798248374106","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}