On June 8th 1988, Fr. Daniel left the States for Indonesia. First, he went to his hometown in East Java bringing with him the translations he wrote during his stay in Greece and America. In his hometown he fostered the conversion of family members, teaching them to make prosphora, and vestments from the local batik materials. Unsure of where to begin the more formal mission, Fr Daniel rented a room in a Christian Prayer Center with another person who later became his staff in the mission office. His goal was to fast and pray until he felt God’s direction.
Eventually, he was directed to begin in Solo, Central Java. Fr Daniel moved from East Java to Solo (Central Java), living in a rented house with a pavilion used for the mission office. Bible studies were started in Solo, where many of his friends who had been part of the charismatic movement lived, and from these came several mission activities. The first convert to the Orthodox faith was a young Muslim man, baptized with the name of Photios. Since then Fr. Daniel witnessed the conversion of many people to Orthodoxy holding mass baptisms in rivers and wooded areas, afraid of other’s reactions and because there was no Church in which to hold them.
