Synod 2023, meeting June 9-15 at Calvin University in Grand Rapids, Mich., appointed Daniel Daley, Ph.D., as assistant professor of New Testament at Calvin Theological Seminary.
Daley comes to CTS from the University of Leuven in Belgium, where he had served a fellowship for the past four years in the school’s department of theology and religious studies, with a focus on biblical studies.
A native of California, Daley grew up in a home where his parents were not believers but was introduced to faith by his grandparents and extended family. At age 15, he gave his life to Christ, kneeling in snow that had fallen in Lake Tahoe, Calif., where he lived at the time, he told synod.
Daley was later encouraged by a pastor who had heard him speak to consider entering vocational ministry. As an undergraduate student at Multnomah University in Oregon, he consumed books on biblical exegesis, Daley said.
“I chipped away at all the wrong answers until I got to what I thought were the right ones, and when I looked at it, I thought ‘that looks like Reformed theology,’” Daley said.
When asked about how he would incorporate Old Testament teachings into his New Testament instruction, Daley spoke of how the Bible is a single story.
“To me, the Bible is an authoritative record of God’s interaction with his people and his people’s interactions with him,” he said. “It’s a really simple way to describe the Bible.”
Daley served in various pastoral roles at two churches in Reno, Nev., before going to graduate school. He earned two master’s degrees at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland and then moved to Trinity College Dublin in Ireland, where he was a tutor and assistant lecturer of New Testament for four years while earning his doctorate.
Daley told delegates that he seeks to create “a cultural environment in the classroom” to get students to engage with the material and with each other. One of the things he has done is to invite groups of students—typically three to five at a time—to his home to hang out with his family.
“Not only do we get to know (the students) better, which makes it easier to guide and to mentor and instruct, but it also creates a comfortability that breaks down barriers in the classroom,” Daley said.
Daley has published one book through Baylor University Press, God’s Will and Testament, and has a second book, Ideal Disciples: A Commentary on Matthew’s Beatitudes, that will be published later this year.
Synod 2023 is meeting June 9-15 at Calvin University in Grand Rapids, Mich. Find daily coverage from The Banner news team at thebanner.org/synod. Visit crcna.org/synod for the synod schedule, webcast, recordings, photos, committee reports, and liveblog. Synod is the annual general assembly of the Christian Reformed Church.
About the Author
Greg Chandler is a freelance news correspondent for The Banner. He lives in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
