By Florida Catholic staff - Florida Catholic
MIAMI | Msgr. David L. Toups, a priest of the Diocese of St. Petersburg who serves as rector of St. Vincent de Paul de Paul Regional Seminary in Boynton Beach, has been named bishop of the Diocese of Beaumont, Texas, by Pope Francis.
"My episcopal ordination will be on August 21st in Beaumont – and then I become a Texan!," Bishop-elect Toups wrote in a message emailed to the seminary's supporters.
Photographer: TOM TRACY | FC
Msgr. David Toups, who has served as rector and president of St. Vincent de Paul Regional Seminary in Boynton Beach since 2012, has been named the sixth bishop of the Diocese of Beaumont, Texas, by Pope Francis. The announcement was made June 9, 2020.
"You might imagine the flood of emotions that I have been feeling since receiving the call," he added. "My first thought went to SVDP, and my love for the seminarians, faculty and staff of whom I have had the pleasure to serve for eleven years (2007-2010, 2012-2020), and to all of you who so faithfully pray for and support our mission of priestly formation."
In his own letter to supporters, Bishop Felipe Estevez of St. Augustine, who chairs the seminary's board of trustees, praised Bishop-elect Toups' leadership of the seminary over the past eight years.
He noted that "renovation and expansion of the seminary" was the motto Bishop-elect Toups chose when he was named president and rector. And in fact, with the support of generous donors, he oversaw over $15 million in new construction and major renovation over the past eight years.
But, Bishop Estevez wrote, Msgr. Toups was clear that when he spoke of "renovation and expansion" he was talking about much more than the physical look of the seminary.
"Going back to his first stint at the seminary, he was responsible for promoting the development of priestly character, lived within a deep love for the Church," Bishop Estevez wrote. "In close collaboration with the bishops and the entire board, he has renewed and renovated the faculty and the sense of mission of the seminary."
Bishop-elect Toups was born on March 26, 1971 in Seattle, Washington, and was ordained to the priesthood on June 14, 1997 for the Diocese of St. Petersburg. He attended Florida Southern College in Lakeland before entering St. John Vianney College Seminary in Miami and earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in philosophy and theology in 1993. He then attended the Pontifical North American College in Rome and obtained a Bachelor of Sacred Theology and Licentiate of Sacred Theology from the Pontifical Gregorian University, and a doctorate in Sacred Theology from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas (Angelicum).
His assignments after ordination include: parochial vicar at St. Francis Cabrini Parish in Spring Hill (1997-2001); doctoral studies at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas (2002-2004); assistant dean of students (2004) and dean of students (2004-2006) at St. Vincent de Paul Regional Seminary; the Administrative Council, Faculty Council and Seminary Formation Team, and professor of sacramental and liturgical theology at St. Vincent de Paul Seminary (2004-2006).
Between 2007-2010, Msgr. Toups was released from diocesan assignment to serve as the associate director of the Secretariat for Clergy, Consecrated Life, and Vocations at the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops in Washington. He returned to the Diocese of St. Petersburg in 2010 and served as pastor of Christ the King Parish in Tampa (2010-2012) before being named president and rector of St. Vincent de Paul Seminary in 2012.
Bishop-elect Toups has also served as a member of the diocesan Presbyteral Council (1997-2001), the National Board of the National Federation of Priests’ Councils (1997-2001), and as Observer for Region IV to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ November meetings from 2000-2002. He is fluent in English and Spanish and has familiarity with Italian.
His appointment was announced June 9, 2020, by Archbishop Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the United States.
Bishop-elect Toups will be Beaumont's sixth bishop. He succeeds Bishop Curtis J. Guillory, 76, a member of the Society of the Divine Word, who reached the mandatory retirement age for bishops. The Diocese of Beaumont is comprised of 7,878 square miles and has a total population of 643,798 of which 68,597 are Catholic.
