The Only Use

Puritans
in
Childhood's End
(Auto-generated)

The effect of these two inventions upon human society could only be described as devastating, and they had swept away the last remnants of the Puritan aberration.†
Chpt 6

Puritan = an English Protestant who in the 16th and 17th centuries who wanted simpler worship and strict, hard-working lives

Definitions:

(1) (Puritans)
English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who wanted simpler, “purer” worship and emphasized hard work over pleasure

Protestants are Christian groups that broke away from the Catholic Church; in the United States, well-known Protestant churches include Baptists, Methodists, Presbyterians, and Episcopalians.
(2) (meaning too rare to warrant focus)
As a common noun (not capitalized unless at the start of a sentence), puritan or puritanical can refer to someone who is very strict -- especially about religious principles or proper behavior.