Rationalism v Puritanism

Compared to the old days back when America was a newly found land and society has just began to settle, the modern society has even more tenets and explanations to why life is. The old society believed in two main isms rationalism and puritanism. The rationalist thought that world as being reasoned and logical, everything is done with reason and logic. The puritans believes the world to be made by god and god was the one who decided everything; therefore everything they did was under god's order and everything that god didn't order to do is wrong. Rationalist thought of things with more reason and questioned what was right an wrong, makings things more complex compared to the puritans. The puritans only did what god tells them to do(which is pretty much whatever the church leader says because he is the one who talks to god), making things simple and to the point. Due to the fact that puritans aren't suppose to do anything out of order they are more narrow and they have a more strict system. The rationalists have more freedom to think and do as they please as long as the goal is reached. For example the rationalists would be the ones who believe in the "Big Bang" and puritans would oppose any ideas other than that god created the world in six days and rested on the seventh.
I consider myself was being more of a rationalist because I like to be free to take actions of my own, and to question actions of others, to make things reasonable through experimentation. I am an atheist and therefore I would not agree with many of the puritan ideas; however this doesn't mean the rationalist are all atheists. Rationalists may still believe in a religion if they choose to do so. I can see how both isms can be applied into life but I stand strong iwth my choice of being more of a free thinker, a rationalist.