Which of the ‘7 deadly sins’ are Alabamians committing the most?

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September 8, 2014

According to Proverbs 6:16-19, “There are six things that the Lord hates, seven that are an abomination to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil, a false witness who breathes out lies, and one who sows discord among brothers.”

Galatians 5:19-21 adds that “the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.”

From those biblical lists — yes, lists were around long before Buzzfeed even existed — Christian ethicists went on to develop the modern concept of the “seven deadly sins,” which are usually listed as wrath, greed, sloth, pride, lust, envy, and gluttony.

Researchers at Kansas State University decided they wanted to find out which areas of the country commit which sins most frequently.

The maps below display the researchers’ findings. Areas in red supposedly commit the sin in question at a higher rate than usual, areas in blue the opposite.

First, here are two of the sins that Kansas State researchers say Alabamians commit the most:

1. Lust: the researchers determined this by compiling the number of reported STD cases per capita. As the map shows, with the exception of the northeast corner of the state, Alabama has an unusually high rate of STDs.

2. Envy: researchers determined this by compiling the instances of theft per capita. East Alabama is apparently particularly envious.

But even though Kansas State researchers consider Alabamians to be unusually envious, they aren’t particularly greedy…

3. Greed: researchers determined each county’s greediness by comparing average incomes with the number of people living in poverty.

4. Gluttony: researchers determined how gluttonous an area is by tallying up the number of fast-food restaurants per capita.

5. Wrath: researchers determined how wrathful an area is by calculating the number of violent crimes per capita. Southeast Alabama apparently needs to take it easy.

6. Sloth: researchers determined how slothful, or lazy, an area is by ranking its “expenditures on art, entertainment, and recreation compared with employment.”