Author: Joel Daniels

Joel is currently a Chaplain-in-Residence and Ph.D. candidate at Georgetown University. He studies religion from a global perspective through world Christianity, particularly Pentecostalism, Chinese religious philosophy, interreligious dialogue, spiritual formation, and comparative theology, philosophy, and ethics. More importantly, he is the husband of a superstar and father of three world-changers. He's ordained through the American Baptist Churches, USA, closely affiliating with the charismatic branch of the denomination.

Everyday Living

Basics: Do Christians have to tithe?

This series of posts is dedicated to (re)considering basics of Christian faith, and today we examine one regularly misconstrued topic: tithing. Tithing Mandate? The Church persistently preaches that Christians must …

Bible & Theology

Basics: Palm Sunday

My next few posts are dedicated to Christian basics like Palm Sunday (today’s topic), the validity of tithing, evangelism, and inter-religious interaction. Communal Beginning with Palm Sunday, we are presented …

Arts & Culture

Church Planting: Entrepreneurs Encouraged to Apply!

Over the past few weeks, two blog posts – both from the Send Institute – have been written about church planting and entrepreneurialism. Their basic point is this: church planting …

Bible & Theology

Pentecostalism is Nothing

I want to consider a very basic question in this post: What exactly is Pentecostalism? And, perhaps surprisingly, I’m going to argue that it is, in fact, nothing. Something Over the …

Ethics

Overpopulation: Ecological Threat or Unjust Suppression?

With yet another report on environmental degradation, we must once again ask how people of faith should respond. Here we tackle the very controversial issue of overpopulation. Overpopulation Perhaps you’ve …

Bible & Theology

“We’re Under Attack” Theology

I grew up in various pentecostal churches, each providing a unique flare and flavor of the Spirit––some were more “progressive,” offering diverse voices from the pulpit and church leadership while …

Ethics

Should we care that the Earth is dying?

It was widely reported last week that the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change presented new research that says we humans have just over decade to change the way we …

Politics

Reflections on the Church of God General Overseer attending the White House Dinner

On August 27th, the White House hosted a dinner for Evangelical leaders from around the country. These men and women serve in various capacities and the administration chose them due …

Ethics

Rock and Sand: Christian Ethics in an Unethical World

In this post I’d like to broadly consider ethics: why are ethics important, and assuming they are, what is required for ethical living? Disgust Perhaps the most fundamental question regarding …

Arts & Culture

“Woe To You”: A Theology of Children

Remember the simpler times before the U.S. President refused to uphold his most basic oath––representing and supporting his citizens––when all we had to worry about was how our nation detained …