Are there still puritans in Europe or the U.S. ? If not, when did the Puritan creed become ‘extinct’? (for lack of a better word)
Bear in mind, there was never a “Puritan” Church. “Puritans” were merely a faction within the Church of England.
The teachings of John Calvin were embraced by many English Protestants who’d felt that the Church of England was still too Catholic in many respects. These English Calvinists fell into two different camps:
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the “Separatists,” who thought the Anglican Church was too corrupted by Catholicism, and had to be abandoned. (The Pilgrims who landed at Plymouth Rock were Separatists.)
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“Puritans,” who thought it was best to stay in the Church of England, and fight for change from within.
So, what “happened” to each group? Well, the many Congregationalist churches you see in New England today are descended from the churches established in Massachusetts by the Pilgrims.
As for the Puritans, well, over time, the Church of England became comfortable with diversity. Within the C. of E., you have “high” churchmen, who are still very Catholic in their beliefs and their approach to ritual, and the “low” churchmen, who are much more Calvinist in their beliefs. The “low” churchmen are the descendants of the Puritans, who remained part of the Church of England.
If you’ve been to Anglican or Episcopalian churches, you’ve probably noted that they vary greatly in their decor and in their approach to the sacraments. When you see an Anglican church that’s very ornate and very ritualistic, you’re in a “high” church, that’s still quite Catholic (Anglicans and Episcopalians who attend such churches often jokingly call them “Catholic Lite- same rituals, half the guilt”). But if you see such a church that’s much more stark and austere, in which ceremonies are simpler and less elaborate, in which Communion seems like an afterthought, you’re in a “low” church- which is the legacy of the Puritans.
Just to amplify Astorian bit, there are a number of denominations descended from the Puritan movement. In the U.S. the three that you have probably heard of our the Congregationalists (now a part of the United Church of Christ) the Quakers (Society of Friends) and the Unitarians.
The Unitarians?
Despite their rather obvious doctrinal differences, the Unitarians are a direct result of the Puritan movement. It is still possible to find Unitarian congregations which are extremely - as Astorian says - stark and austere, simpler and less elaborate.
“Our”?
Sorry, I tried to stop the post when I spotted that, but it was too late.