Goode men and wommen, o thyng warne I yow:
If any wight be in this chirche now
That hath doon synne horrible, that he
Dar nat, for shame, of it yshryven be,
Or any womman, be she yong or old,
That hath ymaked hir housbonde cokewold,
Swich folk shal have no power ne no grace
To offren to my relikes in this place.
– Geoffrey Chaucer
The Canterbury Tales, The Pardoner’s Prologue. This neat sales pitch has to win Salesman and Marketer of the Year Award for the Pardoner! He uses it when trying to sell his fake "relics" to church congregations. He tells them that anyone who is guilty of a serious sin will have no power to purchase his relics. He specifically mentions wives who have committed adultery – are women his best customers? Boy, you can see them queuing up after that, purses out, to prove that they are without sin!