Howard Paul was born at home, the second son of Barbara and John Paul, in Harrisburg, PA. When he was in high school, as part of his service to the denomination, he served as Moderator of the Presbytery of the Potomac Presbyterian Youth

Fellowship. He graduated with an AA from George Washington University, Columbian College (1949) and transferred to Davidson College in North Carolina, graduating in 1951 with a BA in English and History. He attended Union Theological Seminary in Richmond, VA, and received his MDiv degree in 1954 and was ordained that same year.

 

In his first pastorate, Howard served three congregations in rural South Carolina. In 1956, he was called to be the assistant pastor of Fairlington Presbyterian Church (Washington Metro). Two years later, he was called to be the first installed pastor of Trinity Presbyterian Church in Richmond, VA. While there, as Chair of the Presbytery Camp Committee, he helped successfully racially integrate the Presbytery’s Camp Hanover.

 

In 1964, he was called to be the pastor of the Union Church of Bogota, Colombia (South America), where he served the English speaking Protestant community until 1977.  During his tenure in Bogota, Howard was deeply involved in a wide variety of ecumenical efforts; he was a founding member of the first YMCA in Colombia. Howard also had the honor of meeting Pope Paul V in person.

 

Upon returning to the USA in 1977, Howard served on the administrative staff of The Menaul School. He was called to be pastor of La Mesa Presbyterian Church in January 1979. He served on the Board of Montreat Conference Center, as the Synod representative to the National Board of Men’s Work. In 1983, as Commissioner from the Presbytery of Santa Fe (of which he had also been Moderator), he attended the uniting General Assembly in Atlanta. In 1985, he received his D. Min. from Lancaster Theological Seminary (PA). Howard honorably retired from the ministry in November 1994.

 

For a number of years, Howard served as Chair of the Cuba Work Group, which established a partnership between our Presbytery and the Presbyterian Reformed Church of Cuba, leading many groups on week-long trips to Cuba. He was later named Pastor Emeritus by La Mesa Presbyterian Church.