The complementary pair of sin is awe

Author Terry Pratchett’s character Granny Weatherwax said:

Sin is when you treat people like things. Including yourself. That’s what sin is.

I could not agree more, although I would add animals and the Earth to the list.

Treating others like things. Treating life like a thing. 

We know the experience of being treated like a thing. The entire gloriousness of our existence reduced to thingness. 

As I write this, one of our recently acquired chickens, Lilly, is making a noisy ruckus. She is letting the world know that she has produced her third egg. 

An achievement in the mind of a chicken is worth notifying the world.

She is not a thing. Each chicken, like every life, has their unique expression and character.

I can only surmise that we arrived at this place of sin and thinging through the loss of our connection to life, Earth, others. 

Humility is required for sin to be rendered obsolete. A sense of belonging in a world of such incomprehensible immenseness. A feeling of being a part as well as whole.

The complementary pair of sin is awe. When we live in a state of awe at life and existence, it becomes impossible to treat others as things.

Photo Taken November 17th 2024, Article published August 25th 2025