Dave Capucao

In this Philippine name, the middle name or maternal family name is Dean and the surname or paternal family name is Capucao.

Dave Dean Capucao (born September 25, 1965) is a Filipino Catholic prelate who serves as the fifth Prelate of Infanta in the province of Quezon in the Philippines.

His Excellency, The Most Reverend Dave Dean Capucao D.D., STD, PhD
Prelate of Infanta
Church	Roman Catholic Church
See	Territorial Prelature of Infanta
Appointed	May 16, 2025
Installed	September 5, 2025
Predecessor	Bernardino Cortez
Previous posts	Priest, Territorial Prelature of Infanta (1994–2006; 2011–19; 2021–25) Priest, Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Utrecht (2006–11; 2020–21)
Orders
Ordination	October 3, 1994 by Julio Xavier Labayen
Consecration	September 5, 2025 by Charles John Brown
Personal details
Born	Dave Dean Capucao (1965-09-25) September 25, 1965 (age 60) Naga, Camarines Sur, Philippines
Nationality	Filipino
Alma mater	Saint Louis University Maryhill School of Theology Radboud University Nijmegen Katholieke Universiteit Leuven
Motto	Sentire cum ecclesia (Latin for 'To feel with the Church')
Coat of arms
Ordination history
History Priestly ordination Ordained by Julio Xavier Labayen Date October 3, 1994 Episcopal consecration Principal consecrator Charles John Brown Co-consecrators Bernardino Cortez Rolando Tria Tirona Date September 5, 2025 Place Infanta Cathedral, Infanta, Quezon

Styles of Dave Dean Capucao
Reference style	His Excellency The Most Reverend
Spoken style	Your Excellency
Religious style	Bishop

Early life and education

Dave Dean Capucao was born on September 25, 1965, in Naga, Camarines Sur in the Philippines.^[1][2] After joining the Congregation of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (CICM), he studied philosophy at Saint Louis University in Baguio, followed by theology at Maryhill School of Theology in Quezon City.^[3]

Capucao was sent to the Netherlands in 2000 and studied at the Catholic University of Nijmegen (later Radboud University Nijmegen),^[4] where he earned a master's degree in intercultural and interreligious theology in 2002.^[5] He later worked as a junior researcher from 2002 to 2006,^[3] and defended his doctoral dissertation on religion and ethnocentrism in 2009 at the said university.^[6]

He earned a doctorate in Philosophy (PhD) doctorate in sacred theology (SThD) at Catholic University of Louvain in Belgium and a PhD at Radboud University Nijmegen. ^[1]

Ministry

Priesthood

Capucao was ordained a priest for the Territorial Prelature of Infanta on October 3, 1994.^[3] Following his ordination, he served as parish priest of Nuestra Señora de Salvacion in Casiguran, Aurora, a post he maintained until 2000.^[3]

Upon the invitation of Cardinal Adrianus Johannes Simonis, Capucao remained in the Netherlands in 2006 and was assigned to serve at St. Ludger Parish in Lichtenvoorde.^[2] In 2011, he returned to the Philippines. At the Saint Joseph Formation House in Quezon City (a seminary owned by the Territorial Prelature of Infanta), he was the academic and pastoral director, as well as the formator of the seminary from 2012 to 2014, before becoming its rector in 2015.^[3] Since 2012, Capucao taught in various seminaries and theology schools in Metro Manila and nearby areas ^[3]

He returned to the Netherlands in 2020 and served as visiting priest at St. John the Baptist in Vinkeveen for a year (2020-2021) while taking his sabbatical leave after celebrating his 25th priesthood anniversary.^[2] When he returned back to the Philippines in 2021, he was named superintendent of the Catholic Schools of the Prelature of Infanta.^[1]

Episcopate

Pope Leo XIV appointed Capucao as the fifth Territorial Prelate of Infanta on May 16, 2025, succeeding the retiring Bernardino Cortez. It was Leo's first appointment for the Philippine episcopate since being elected. He was consecrated bishop and installed on September 5, 2025.^[5]