About Dr. Danny

The Rev. Dr. Daniel R. Hyde (“Pastor Danny”) is a 3rd generation SoCal native whose eclectic past has prepared him to minister in the diverse culture that is Southern California. 

He was born at Long Beach Memorial Hospital and soon baptized in the Roman Catholic Church. He spent his early childhood especially in Cypress, during which time his father was converted through the Calvary Chapel Movement in Costa Mesa. After moving to Redondo Beach and experiencing a broken family, he was invited to Hope Chapel Hermosa Beach (Foursquare Church) when he was 17 and was converted to Christ. Danny played basketball at Redondo Union High School under legendary Southern California coach, Jim Nielsen. After graduating, he attended Southern California College/Vanguard University (Assemblies of God) on a basketball scholarship. It was during this time that he became disillusioned as a young believer leading him on a two-year journey exploring Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, and Judaism as well as such as Mormonism and Jehovah’s Witnesses, who frequented his dorm much to the chagrin of his dorm mates! After this, he and his now-wife, Karajean, co-youth pastored at a non-denominational Pentecostal church. All this led Pastor Danny to discover the riches of the historic Protestant and Reformed Christian faith after meeting a classmate, who introduced him to The White Horse Inn radio broadcast, and through his beloved theology professor, Professor Ronald Wright. It was Prof. Wright who started giving him books by Luther, Calvin, and others.

After graduating from SCC with his Bachelor of Arts (B.A., 1997), Danny completed his Master of Divinity (M.Div., 2000) from Westminster Seminary California. It was during his final semester that he began a Bible study in Oceanside, which then led to Escondido United Reformed Church calling him to be the church planter of OURC within Classis Southwest U.S. of the United Reformed Churches in North America. Ten years later he finished his Master of Theology (Th.M., 2010) from Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary and even later (!) defended his doctoral dissertation at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (Ph.D., 2022) in the Graduate School of Religion and Theology entitled, “‘These are the Times’: Public Worship as Manifestation of a New Age of Theo-Politics in the Theology of John Owen” (T&T Clark, forthcoming). You may view his full academic Curriculum Vitae here.

Danny has written numerous books to help people of all backgrounds grow in the knowledge of Christ, including his most popular book, Welcome to a Reformed Church: A Guide for Pilgrims (Reformation Trust Publishing, 2010). For a complete list of his titles, see his personal page. He also serves as Associate Fellow in Practical Theology at Greystone Theological Institute and has taught at the Instituto João Calvino, Mid-America Reformed Seminary, Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary, Seminario Reformado Latinoamericano, and The Davenant Institute.

Pastor Danny is married to his college sweetheart, Karajean, who serves as Director of the Irvine Math Project, and they have four children: Cyprian, Caiden, Daxton, and Sadie. Together they enjoy showing the love of Jesus through hospitality in their home, welcoming any and all who need a meal, prayer, and the encouragement of the Word.