ever, that under the influence of alcohol, women were found to have no modesty. In addition to his commentary on the modesty of women, he also expresses concern at the danger women face under the influence of alcohol. The danger of falling into the wrong situation or being shamefully treated by men is another issue he tackles. Many principles of the Enlightenment are based on Good Works. Man’s Duty is to cultivate reason and do good works. Occom preaches this stating that the drinking and alcohol abuse does not qualify as good deeds and therefore, must be stopped in order to “save” everyone. By drinking, the Native Americans are sinning against God and therefore will never be saved or live eternally. He ties this to his belief that conversion to Christianity is the only way to salvation. As this is one of the first temperance sermons, the striking black and white address that by drinking the Native Americans were denying themselves entrance into God’s righteous domain was a plea to the population to stop the alcohol abuse. He also directly links the drinking to the “miserable condition” that the Native Americans were in, therefore blaming the wanting situation on the people themselves, as sinners, not on God. Occom’s self-awareness shines through in his sermon and provides him with the ability to write about things usually shunned from the spotlight. He is able to voice the Native American concerns in sermon, giving light to their pleas. ...
