Dan Doriani

HOMETOWN:  

FAMILY:  My wife Debbie teaches music and remembers thousands of names. We have three daughters, Abigail (teacher), Sarah (architectural design ) and Beth (student). Abby is married to Dave Karsten and Sarah to Branden Miller.

MINISTRY 

SERVING AS:  Senior Pastor

DUTIES:  To preach, teach and train the church, to oversee the pastors and ministry staff, to lead the church and to orchestrate the gifted folks of the church.

PASSIONS:  Preaching and teaching. Open dialogue both with disciples and skeptics. Honest, unfettered conversation. Active sports.

PHILOSOPHY OF MINISTRY & LIFE: Theologically, I am orthodox and evangelical, a glad heir of Reformed and Presbyterian principles. I believe in the triune God, as fully revealed in Jesus - God, man and redeemer. I believe in the inspiration, authority, clarity and relevance of God's Word. I believe in the gospel of grace, which every believer needs every day. I believe the bodily resurrection of Jesus proves that all of life counts, both now and forever. I believe Jesus is Lord of this life and that he wants us to reclaim it for him. 

I want to lead our church into deeper community and discipleship, into authentic worship and effective evangelism, into simple service to the needy as well as engagement with the powers of this world. I want to live in love and in honesty, in passion and in humility. I confess that my best efforts are often poor and that I don't always give my best effort. 

EDUCATION/ORDINATION:

I earned a B.A. from Geneva, an M.Div. and a Ph.D. from Westminster Seminary and an S.T.M. from Yale, where I was twice a research fellow. I was ordained in the Presbyterian Church in America and now serve in the Evangelical Presbyterian Church.

FAVORITES

BOOKS:  Matthew, Romans, James; I admire J. Calvin, D.A. Carson, C.E.B. Cranfield, C.S. Lewis, M. Luther, J. Stott, K. Vanhoozer, B. Waltke, C. Wright, N.T. Wright, and good reference works. I admire Plato, Aristotle, Shakespeare, Dostoevsky.

QUOTE:  Polonius: What do you read, my lord? Hamlet: Words, words, words.

MUSIC:  Mozart, Faure, Allison Kraus, Mark Knopfler, The Shins, Sting, Sufjan Stevens, Brooks Williams, classical and folk guitar music    

MOVIES:  The Princess Bride, The Fugitive, The Lives of Others, Almost Famous, Hannah and her Sisters, Tootsie, Fog of War, Shakespeare in Love, Before Sunrise, Ratatouille.

HOBBIES: tennis, hiking, fitness, all sorts of games and sports. 

 

FOODS: Fresh fruit, pasta with great sauces.   

STRANGE BUT TRUE:  I spoke in a lecture series after Bono and before Mel Gibson. Bertrand Russell's son was my dissertation advisor. Abigail was in the world championship in Ultimate Frisbee. I like to pick wedding dresses.

AS AN AUTHOR:  I've written ten books and contributed to seven, including three commentaries: Matthew, James, and The Sermon on the Mount. There are two on family and gender: The Life of A God-Made Man and Women and Ministry. And three on Bible interpretation: Putting the Truth to Work, Getting the Message, and Beyond the Sacred Page. The next book is a secret...