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Constructing Alternative Christian Identities: an Ethnography of Jesus

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Constructing Alternative Christian Identities: an Ethnography of Jesus Constructing Alternative Christian Identities: An Ethnography of Jesus People USA‟s Cornerstone Festival by Brian Edward Johnston A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Communication College of Arts and Sciences University of South Florida Co-Major Professor: David Payne, Ph.D. Co-Major Professor: Jane Jorgenson, Ph.D. Fred Steier, Ph.D. Maria Cizmic, Ph.D. Date of Approval: March 29, 2011 Keywords: Christian Rock, Social Constructionism, Evangelicalism, Play, Community Copyright © 2011, Brian Edward Johnston Dedication This dissertation is dedicated to my son, Oliver, and to my love, Samantha. I would like to thank Sabra Vanderford Godair for recommending Cornerstone Festival as my dissertation topic. Additionally, I wish to convey my regards to those fellow-travelers who accompanied me to my first and subsequent Cornerstone Festivals. I am grateful to John Herrin for giving me access to the festival for this study and to JPUSA for allowing me to visit their community in Chicago, Illinois. Acknowledgments I wish to thank my co-advisors, David Payne and Jane Jorgenson, for their commitment to this dissertation. Thanks, also, to Fred Steier and Maria Cizmic for their committee service. In addition to these committee members, Michael LeVan provided considerable feedback early in the research process. Much of the content for Chapter Two was developed in a seminar class with Dr. Priscilla Brewer, and this chapter is dedicated to her in loving memory. Special thanks to Ken Cissna for his support, most notably his administrative support during the early stages of the project. I am furthermore grateful to the Communication Department at the University of South Florida for providing me with funding and teaching opportunities during this process. Several colleagues provided moral support during the early drafts of this manuscript, including Tom Frentz, Lynne Webb, and Bud Goodall. Although not directly involved in this project, it could not have been accomplished without the instruction of Art Bochner and Carolyn Ellis. Table of Contents List of Figures .................................................................................................................... iii Abstract .............................................................................................................................. iv Prologue ...............................................................................................................................1 Chapter One: Convergences of Faith and Identity ...............................................................5 Jesus People USA ....................................................................................................8 Contemporary Christian Music ..............................................................................11 Socialization Processes at Cornerstone Festival ....................................................19 Method of Study ....................................................................................................21 Preview of Chapters ...............................................................................................25 Conclusion .............................................................................................................28 Chapter Two: Jesus People in Golf Carts ..........................................................................29 The Jesus People Movement ..................................................................................30 Jesus People USA‟s “Friendly Towers” ................................................................34 Cornerstone Festival ..............................................................................................38 Play as Socialization ..............................................................................................48 Conclusion .............................................................................................................52 Chapter Three: Making Camp ...........................................................................................54 Waiting at the Gate ................................................................................................55 The Cornerstone “Land Rush” ...............................................................................62 Hippie Preacher Land ............................................................................................71 A Conversation with Festival Director, John Herrin .............................................74 Virtual Tour of Cornerstone ...................................................................................79 Conclusion .............................................................................................................88 Chapter Four: Constructing a Christian Rock Aesthetic ....................................................92 The Roundtable, Part I .........................................................................................101 Rubin ....................................................................................................................107 Ricky ....................................................................................................................111 Cart Security Duty: Wednesday...........................................................................115 Reminiscing Camp ...............................................................................................118 Celebrating a Quarter-Century of Cornerstone Festival ......................................121 Conclusion ...........................................................................................................125 i Chapter Five: Variations of Music Experiences and Christian Identity ..........................128 Jesus People Music ..............................................................................................129 The Roundtable, Part II ........................................................................................136 Generator Stages ..................................................................................................139 Cart Security Duty: Thursday ..............................................................................147 Evening Shows: Headnoise, Sixpence None the Richer, Aradhna ......................151 The Roundtable, Part III ......................................................................................156 Cornerstone‟s Place in “The Scene” ....................................................................159 Cart Security Duty: Friday ...................................................................................164 “Boycott Hell” .....................................................................................................168 Conclusion ...........................................................................................................170 Chapter Six: Communitas and Structure..........................................................................173 Cornerstone Walkabout .......................................................................................175 The Tea House .....................................................................................................183 The New Crew, Revisited ....................................................................................187 Cornerstone Public Journal ..................................................................................192 Cart Security Duty: Saturday ...............................................................................198 Altar Call ..............................................................................................................202 Chapter Seven: Cornerstone Festival as Rhetorical Site ..................................................211 Ethnographic Approaches to Studying Rhetoric ..................................................218 References ........................................................................................................................224 About the Author ................................................................................................... End Page ii List of Figures Figure 2.1: Asylum Tent Advertisement ...........................................................................45 Figure 3.1: Encore-1 ..........................................................................................................81 Figure 3.2: Tents ................................................................................................................82 Figure 3.3: Phone Booths and Toilets ................................................................................82 Figure 3.4: Advertisements ................................................................................................83 Figure 3.5: The Merchants Tent.........................................................................................84 Figure 3.6: Cornerstone Collage ........................................................................................85 Figure 3.7: Labyrinth .........................................................................................................86 Figure 4.1: Rubin .............................................................................................................107 Figure 5.1: Brother Red Squirrel .....................................................................................132 Figure 5.2: Generator Stage with Canopy ........................................................................140
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