Fire and Brimstone

A religious revival called the Great Awakening swept across the colonies in the 1730s and 1740s, taking the colonists by storm. With their "hellfire and brimstone" sermons, preachers ignited scores of followers, some of whom tried to convert the Native Americans and the slaves. A divide separated the older, more traditional clergy and the people who participated in the Great Awakening. The traditionalists were taken aback by the new methods of preaching and by the passionate responses of the people who experienced revival. Why do you think the traditionalists reacted as they did?