Pastor Daniel eisenberg: leading with faith in action in northeast philadelphia
“we are loved beyond measure, and never forgotten by God; which is why I am called to this work.”
The term “Faith in Action” is used regularly when discussing faith leaders organizing for a better Pennsylvania, but what does it actually mean?
To clergy like Pastor Dan, it means leading through service and sacrifice. As the lead pastor of St. John’s Lutheran Church of Mayfair (Northeast Philadelphia) he also serves as an advocate and organizer for social justice in his neighborhood; partnering with POWER Interfaith. Dan’s justice journey began as a child, being raised in a multi-faith household. Raised by a Jewish father and Christian mother, Dan was exposed to a larger worldview, where he dug deeper into faith, morality, and what community should look like.
While being raised between the two, he recalls an Ash Wednesday service he attended with a friend which would mark a turning point in his worldview. “From dust you came, into dust you will return,” he recalls hearing while sitting in the pew. While those words may sound bleak, the preacher would continue to discuss God’s unwavering love and how He promises to walk with us on this earth through all its challenges. The preacher continued, promising that God would bring meaning and light to whatever he set his heart to in the future. That calling would just happen to be pastoring and a call to social justice.
The idea that we are never forgotten by God, has served as Pastor Dan’s “North Star” in his service toward social justice. “As people of faith, we believe that each and every one of us is created in the image of God and has something to contribute to this world. Striving to help all people find their voice” says Pastor Dan.
Pastor Dan has put faith in action by actively organizing for affordable housing throughout Northeast Philadelphia. Personal experience from his upbringing and watching his mother work multiple jobs to provide for him and his brother, gave him the perspective that every human deserves to live in dignity and should not have to struggle to put a roof over their families’ head. It is through the culmination of lived experience and that of his congregation members, that inspires him to continue his fight for justice.
Pastor Dan organizes and fights for justice for the large community, serving as a spiritual guide for his congregation, and a loving partner and father to his family, and a champion of justice in his neighborhood.
