He was born in Fresno, California, on November 16, 1954, to Orville and Marjory Brum, the eldest son in a Roman Catholic family.

He was asked by his bishop to continue further studies in 1992, and, in 1995, received a licentiate of Canon Law (JCL) from the Catholic University of America, Washington, D.C. During this time, his relationship with Orthodoxy continued with his research, and his study of canon law brought him closer to Orthodoxy.

In December 2005, he asked to return to parish ministry, and in July 2006 he was transferred to the Diocese of the West and appointed Rector of Sts Peter and Paul Church, Phoenix.

[1] On April 7, 2014, he was tonsured by Archbishop Benjamin (Peterson) at the Monastery of St John of Shanghai, receiving the name Daniel.

[5] A three-day celebration took place in Chicago from September 30 through October 2, celebrating the feast of the Protection of the Most Holy Theotokos, and the enthronement of the twelfth hierarch of Chicago and the Diocese of the Midwest, Bishop Daniel[6] On November 11, 2022, he was unanimously elevated to the dignity of Archbishop by the OCA Holy Synod.