Today’s post is the first in a series of posts that will help us better know the folks that we worship with each week. In each post, we’ll play Q&A with a member of the church.
1. Can you share a short bio with us?
Dan Claire is a fifth-generation Floridian who moved to the District of Columbia in 1999 to lead in the development of theological education programs for metro Washington. Dan went to college and medical school at the University of Florida. He completed ministerial training at Reformed Theological Seminary in Orlando, and is a PhD candidate at the Catholic University of America. Dan is married to Elise, and they have four children.
2. How long have you attended Rez?
We have been part of Resurrection from the very beginning. We began a new church in our living room during the summer of 2002. After struggling for six months, we decided to make some changes and restart in 2003. We began having monthly ‘Taste and See’ meetings at our house in 2003. We moved into another home near Key Bridge during Advent 2003 and began holding weekly worship services at that time. We started meeting at Christ our Shepherd on Capitol Hill on Ash Wednesday, 2004.
3. When did you start following Christ? What have been some of the spiritual turning points in your life? Do you have a favorite bible verse?
I was raised in a Christian home, by parents who know and love God, and taught me to do the same. During my childhood we moved several times, and with each move we joined a new local church. Through these moves, I experienced quite a lot of diversity in the churches we visited and attended. In college, as a young man with many unanswered questions, I found myself leading a campus ministry in moral and spiritual chaos, and through this experience I learned firsthand that beliefs have consequences. It was at this time that an older brother in Christ took me under his wing and began to disciple me in the faith. Over a period of seven years, he taught me how to dig deep into the Scriptures, and to shape my life accordingly as a follower of Jesus.
Elise and I got married in 1994 while I was in medical school at the University of Florida. During the summer of 1995, on the occasion of our first anniversary, we set aside a day for prayer and fasting, and it was during this time that the Lord clearly led us both in a new direction. I would leave medicine and trust God to take care of us financially. He promised that he would show us what to do next. When we returned from celebrating our anniversary, I withdrew from medical school, and spent several months resting and waiting on the Lord. It was a rich, peaceful season of growth for us as a young couple and for me as a disciple of Jesus.
In the summer of 1996, God opened many doors so that I could attend Reformed Theological Seminary in Orlando. We took a position as the resident managers of the newly opened Ronald McDonald House of Orlando, where we lived and cared for families with children in medical need. In providing us with housing, jobs, money, and direction, God was keeping the promises he had made to us the prior summer.
I inherited from my mom a love for Proverbs 3:5-6, and when I look back over my life, I see the truth of this verse confirmed again and again. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will direct your paths.”
4. What is your favorite hymn / praise song? Why?
I love ‘Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing.’ I love the line ‘Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it; prone to leave the God I love,’ followed immediately by the offering of my heart to God. It’s a great hymn of thanksgiving, confession, faith and hope.
5. What was your childhood nickname(s)?
As a little boy I was “Danny” to most everyone. By the time I got to Kindergarten, I was too cool for Danny.
6. Tell us a little about your day job / studies.
In addition to preaching and pastoral counseling, I am responsible for the leadership of the parish, including leading the staff and parish council. I am the liaison between our congregation and our bishop, Thad Barnum, and I serve on the executive team of our regional body, the Northeast Network. I also lead in the combined pastoral meetings of our three local churches, and work to promote collaboration as much as possible. I also lead our urban ministry council. With so many activities and ministries, there are quite a few administrative needs, and I tend to be the ultimate troubleshooter. I love leading in worship and ministry, studying the Word, and pastoral counseling. As with most pastors, I would love to be free of many administrative responsibilities.
7. What kinds of things do you do with your free time?
In my free time, I play with my kids, get caught up with my wife, make improvements on our house, work on a PhD dissertation, watch the reimagined Battlestar Galactica, enjoy good IPAs, and play board games. If I had more time, I would ride my bike and play guitar in an 80’s cover band.
8. When you see me on Sunday nights, you should ask me about:
On Sunday nights, please ask me for a concise explanation of the dual nature of Christ. If there’s time, I suggest you follow up with the problem of evil, and perhaps the free will/predestination debate. (This is why we hired Matthew Mason.)
9. What are some of your hopes for the future of the church?
I would love to see the people in our church play a role in addressing some of the systemic problems of Washington. If housing and quality education became affordable, it would be a lot more feasible for people to put down roots and raise their families here. We decry the “brain drain” in the developing world as the brightest and best come to the West, and yet there is a similar phenomenon here in the District. In both cases, it is at enormous cost to the Kingdom of God. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if our concern for the city resulted in it becoming a better place to live, and as a result, Washingtonians gave thanks to the God we serve?
10. What is your dream job?
Sometimes I dream about working in agriculture or construction or some other field in which I could work with my hands and at the end of the day, or season, see the fruit of my labors. But most of the time I’m very content to be a church-planting pastor leading a vibrant church in a global city. It’s a dream job, though I would like to see the fruit of my work a little more often.
11. How long have you been married? Tell us a little bit about how you met your spouse.
We are approaching 16 years of marriage. We met in 1993 at the wedding reception of a mutual friend, at a table piled three feet high with shrimp. I asked Elise if I could get her a drink, and she said yes, so long as it wasn’t alcoholic or caffeinated or carbonated. She was Anglican, and this was her Lenten vow, though she didn’t tell me at the time. I got her a cup of water and we talked for quite a long time. I asked for her address, and we wrote letters to one another for several months before we started dating. We married about a year after our first date, on June 25, 1994, when I was 24 and she was 22.
13. Tell us a bit about your kids.
The day after I turned 30, Annelise was born at Georgetown University Hospital, as have all of her other siblings. She is nine years old, and loves reading and drawing and dolls. She’s a night owl and loves to sleep late in the mornings. She is named after Elise’s mother, Anne Taber, and Elise, of course.
Joseph will turn eight on March 10. He is named after both of my grandfathers, OJ Claire and Joe Stidham. His middle name, Ransom, comes from the protagonist in the Space Trilogy by C S Lewis. Joseph wakes up at 6 am daily, and often has finished his math schoolwork and his chores before his older sister wakes up. Joseph loves to play with other boys 24/7; he likes legos and video games and other fun boy stuff.
Vivian is five. She is named after my maternal grandmother. Vivian loves animals, and would much prefer to play dogs instead of dolls. When Vivian grows up, she will settle for becoming a veterinarian if she can’t become a dog.
Lucia is three. She was born on “a dark and stormy night,” but her eyes were wide open, and she so lit up the room that we gave her the name Lucia. Her first name is Margaret, as is Elise’s, who also was the fourth-born child in a series of girl-boy-girl-girl. Lucia loves candy, chocolate, chocolate milk, milk and honey, sweet cereal, cherry lip gloss, donuts, cookies, and ice cream. She also likes to wake up early with her brother and help make coffee.
