The Seven Deadly Sins: What, when and why?

Dave Burke  |  Comment
Date posted:  18 Jun 2026
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The Seven Deadly Sins: What, when and why?

Photo by Jonas Kakaroto on Unsplash.

Steven Jones was working at a university in Siberia when his zest for life fell off a cliff. Everything he used to love had lost its flavour and his motivation had evaporated. A colourless mood descended on him, lasting for months.

Steven’s an expert on the late Middle Ages (1100 AD to 1500 AD). Stuck in a Siberian university in the middle of winter, an ancient pastoral tool came to his rescue.

From eight to seven

In the 300s AD, a desert monk, Evagrius Ponticus, set out to analyse the negative workings of his mind and came up with what he called "Eight Generic Thoughts".

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