Culture Clash

There are many ways and reasons why there was such a culture clash between the Native Americans and the Puritans. One of the main reasons would be religious differences. From Tecumseh's poem, it would seem as if his religion was a rather relaxed and thankful religion. It speaks of giving thanks for sunlight, food and "the joy of being alive". On the other hand, the Puritanism practiced by the Pilgrims was practiced to some extent out of fear, and was in the case of some of Jonathan Edward's teachings, pretty "in your face". I say that it was practiced out of fear because of the way that some of the the teachings say things such as God "abhors you, and is dreadfully provoked". Living in North America, a land that had many different snakes that were probably the cause of numerous deaths, it was most likely very offensive to be told that with the God of this new religion, "you are ten-thousand times more abominable in his eyes, than the most hateful, venomous serpent is in ours". Frankly, telling people that they are evil and are despised by God, was probably not the best way to convince them to convert.