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154 8 Becoming Champions of Life Donna: Yes, I’m ambitious. But I let God make my goals. How can Oasis confidently and aggressively send out ambitious workers to succeed in the materialistic, exploitative, profit-driven, and image-conscious culture of the entertainment industry? The answer lies in understanding that the religious identity formed at Oasis does not thrust forward individuals as autonomous workers but with a corporate identity that radically binds them with a deep sense of commonality and solidarity with other struggling Christians who are trying to make it in a difficult world. “My motives, my everything behind my reasons for being a part of this is not what I was seeking when I was seeking fame and fortune,” an Oasis musician said. “It’s not about fame and fortune for me. It’s more about being a part of a Christian family that is out there impacting the world in different ways.” At Oasis, the individual is part of a corporate group. Members come to believe that when they go out into the world they are never truly alone. Oasis draws the ambitious who have been burned in their ambition. They have dreams and goals but fail to see how they will be fulfilled. Many who are pursuing careers in the entertainment industry are out of work, low on cash, and do not know when the next gig will happen. The teachings at Oasis regularly emphasize God’s care for people if they continue to do what is right. For Durkheim, people experience in life a “day-in, day-out struggle” full of “incessant conflict and friction” (1995, 352). In book 3 of The Elementary Forms of Religious Life, he analytically describes rituals of integration that bring together a sacred people. Coming together through ritual “refreshes a spirit worn down by all this overburdening and day-to-day labor” (385; see also Jay 1992, 17–19). At Oasis, the consistent, public encouragement is to come, get some love, and get some help so that you can go out there and “do your thing.” Oasis is a refuge for people who have been hurt, abused, mistreated, and demoralized. As Durkheim explains, through participation in the congregation, the “individual soul” is “regenerated by immersing itself once more in the very wellspring of its life. As a result, that soul is stronger” (385). “Champion of life” is the single guiding image of Christian discipleship that centers the thought, motivation, and activity of Oasis believers. “That’s the core thing,” Bridgette said. “Becoming the champion—who you’re supposed to be.” Becoming Champions of Life 155 Oasis succeeds in its vision to cultivate “champions in life” by effecting a strategic reorientation of personal identity. Understanding the power of this identity is part of understanding the power of religion as a cultural force within society. Reflecting on many years of research, R. Stephen Warner emphasized that “religion in America is especially important because it provides group identities . . . and helps them act together in the world.” Further, “in the most robust cases, religion engenders intense solidarity, courage to face adversity, and inspiration to better the group’s lot. Understanding the grounds and the significance of such group-formation functions of religion is a research frontier in sociology of religion that is especially central to the new paradigm as I understand it” (2005, 284). While the image of being a champion of life is not deterministic, it is a rich base of common identity that vitalizes worship at Oasis and repurposes members’ work in the broader world (see Marti 2008). As Oasis negotiates social change by providing this religious identity as champion and overcomer as an anchor in the midst of difficult career choices and failed opportunities, individuals subsume themselves to a religious system that sanctions ambition and provides handles on how to work through failure, cope with challenges from overwhelming social structures, and manage exploitation and injustice. The fully formed disciple at Oasis is an empowered achiever. This person is aware of challenges and struggles that exist in their world. While most Americans have trouble seeing the connection between their own ambitions for achievement and the institutional structures that make them possible (Bellah 1985, 1991), the believers of Oasis readily connect their own economic lives to their involvement in the congregation. The church is acknowledged as a place that helps them actualize their dreams and build the moral strength to pursue those dreams and enjoy life along the way. And while scholars like...

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