As a Baptist movement, we were deeply saddened by the recent passing of Dan Fennell, pastor of Norton Summit Baptist Church.
Dan grew up in Naracoorte in the South East and became a Christian while studying teaching at Flinders University. After completing his degree, Dan worked as a schoolteacher before sensing Gods call to cross cultural mission work. This led Dan, his wife Dianne, and their 3 children to move to Jakarta in 1988, where they spent the next 20 years serving in Christian ministry.
In 2020, Dan and Dianne returned to Adelaide and Dan was appointed as interim pastor at Norton Summit Baptist Church. It reflected the congregation’s respect and love for Dan and his ministry that when the interim ministry period concluded, the congregation were very eager to appoint Dan as their ongoing pastor, and Dan was inducted into this role in January 2022.
It was clear to all who met Dan that he was a man who loved the Lord, had a passion for teaching God’s word, and had a deep love and concern for the church. Dan had a passion for biblical history and had the opportunity to lead many tours to the biblical lands, later writing the book “The World of the Word” about his experiences in the biblical lands. Dan was a dedicated pastor and a thoughtful, generous, caring and kind man and he will be greatly missed by all who knew him.
'The World of the Word' by Dan Fennell, explores the lands of the Bible and invites readers into discipleship
Please be in prayer for Dan’s wife Dianne and their children, Jordan, Haddon and Josiah. Please also pray for the congregation at Norton Summit, who have experienced several significant seasons of grief and loss as a church. As a movement we are actively seeking to support the church in this season.
We give thanks for the life and ministry of Dan. We are reminded in times such as these, that even in grief, we have hope, and a blessed assurance. Having served the Lord faithfully and proclaimed consistently the gospel of grace, Dan has now received the reward of his faith and is with his Lord in glory.
