Daniel Schwerin
Bishop Daniel Schwerin
Active
United States
North Central Jurisdiction
Chicago Episcopal Area
Bishop Schwerin was assigned to the Northern Illinois Annual Conference, effective January 1, 2023.-------------------------------------------------
Early Life
Bishop Schwerin was born in Waukesha, Wisconsin. He heard a call to ministry when he was seventeen at the Concord UMC, a few miles from where a Methodist circuit-rider in his family cast a shadow with his witness a lifetime before him.
Education and Ordination
Bishop Schwerin holds a bachelor’s degree from Carroll University (1985), and a Master of Divinity (MDiv.) from Perkins School of Theology (1989). He received his first exposure to Bowen Family Systems Theory during the Perkins School of Theology Mentor Program (1992-1994). While serving as a student pastor in the Oklahoma Conference, he was ordained as a deacon by Bishop John Wesley Hardt (1987). After beginning his service in the Wisconsin Conference, he was ordained as an elder by Bishop David Lawson (1991).
Ordained Ministry
June 9th,1985, was Schwerin’s first Sunday in the pulpit, after having been appointed as a student pastor to Stephens United Methodist Church in Duncan, Oklahoma. The church became racially integrated and grew to become a full-time appointment. Following seminary, Schwerin was appointed to the Parfreyville UMC in Waupaca, Wisconsin, effective June 1, 1990. The church grew, renovated its building, and built a new parsonage. Schwerin was appointed as the founding pastor of Still Waters United Methodist Church in Jackson, Wisconsin on April 15, 1996, where he stayed through the chartering of the congregation as well as finishing its first phase building in 2000.
Superintendency
He was appointed as a District Superintendent of the Metro South District in 2002, and then appointed to serve both the Metro North and Metro South Districts from 2004-2007. Following his time as a District Superintendent, Bishop Schwerin was appointed to First UMC Waukesha, Waukesha, Wisconsin from 2007-2021. During that time the church led an ecumenical response to the issue of homelessness in the city, became a reconciling congregation, and developed a beloved community of non-profit partners that served families with children. After the General Conference of 2019, Dan was asked by Bishop Jung to lead a collaborative effort with Wisconsin Conference partners for Bishop Jung’s vision to increase racial justice and radical inclusion. Schwerin was appointed as the Assistant to the Bishop in the Wisconsin Conference in 2021. He was serving in that position when he was elected.
Episcopacy
Rev. Schwerin was elected as a bishop of The United Methodist Church on November 3, 2022, by the North Central Jurisdiction in Fort Wayne, Indiana. He was consecrated on November 5th and assigned to the Northern Illinois Area, effective January 1, 2023.
Family
Bishop Schwerin is married to his wife, Julie. He is the father of two, Rachel Schwerin Kuschewski and Andrew Schwerin, as well as four grandchildren. Dan and Julie love evening walks and labyrinths. His debut poetry collection, ORS, from red moon press, won the Haiku Foundation’s Touchstone Award in 2016.
Mailing Address
CHICAGO EPISCOPAL AREA - UMC303 E. Wacker Drive, Suite 2020
Chicago
Illinois
60601
United States of America