Wolfgang H. Paul
Elder Paul was born in Munster, Germany. His parents were Johan Paul and Berta Starbati Paul. His family were members of the Church of Jesus Christ. His father had joined the Church back in 1923.
While Elder Paul was growing up, his family were the only members of the Church in their city.[1] Elder Paul served in the military. On April 2nd, 1964, Paul married Helga Klappert in the Bern Switzerland Temple. Elder Paul actually has a much older connection with the Swiss Temple. Although he was fifteen, Elder Paul was not at the dedication of the temple. In fact, only his father went. However, the family saw a change in his father after he went to the temple, and Elder Paul has remarked that on hearing his father tell of his experience at the dedication and hearing President David O. McKay speak, he wished he had been at the dedication and resolved to go to the temple himself.[2]
Elder Paul graduated from the German Federal Government Administration Academy and served for several years as a government official of the Germany Federal Republic. Paul later worked full time for the Church. He was the Area Supervisor of Temporal Affairs for the Church of Jesus Christ in parts of Europe when he was called as a General Authority.[3]
In church service callings Elder Paul has served as a Regional Representative of the Twelve, counselor in a stake presidency, stake Young Men president, bishop, branch president, high priests' group leader, and elders quorum president. Elder Paul served as president of the Germany Hamburg Mission starting in 1988. When the Germany Dresden Mission was organized, the next year Elder Paul was made president of that mission.
While mission president in the Germany Dresden Mission, Paul used TV Guide ads to attract interest in the Book of Mormon.[4]
In 1995 when Area Authorities were first called, Paul was the only Area Authority in the Europe East Area. Due to boundary changes he was later assigned to the Europe Central Area. He was later reassigned to the Europe East Area and served for a time as a counselor in the presidency of that area, making him one of the few Area Seventies who have served in an area presidency. In 2005 Paul was called as a member of the Second Quorum of the Seventy. He served as a counselor in the Europe East Area Presidency during his five years of service. He was released in 2010.
Elder and Sister Paul are the parents of three children.
In August 2008 Elder Paul was the featured speaker at a Young Single Adult conference in Krasnoyarsk, Russia.[5] Elder Paul has also traveled to Adana, Turkey, where he has addressed a branch conference that was functionally a district conference for a one-district branch.[6]
References
- ↑ Friend, Oct. 2006, pp. 8-9
- ↑ Shaun D. Stahle. "Swiss Temple: Dedication a Bold Act of Faith" in Church News, September 17, 2005, p. 12.
- ↑ The sources cited do not clearly state which area Elder Paul was over, but with the periodic changes in the area boundaries in Europe throughout the 1990s, it probably varied over time.
- ↑ Ensign, Oct. 1991, pp. 73-74.
- ↑ Meridian Magazine article on Siberia YSA conference. See also the article in August 23rd, 2008 Church News for information.
- ↑ blog by member of the Adana branch at the conference You can tell it is patterned on a district or stake conference, because there is a Saturday meeting, not normal for a Ward Conference or branch conference.
Sources
- Davis, Garold N. "Germany Dresden Mission" in Garr, Arnold K., Donald Q. Cannon and Richard O. Cowan, ed., Encyclopedia of Latter-day Saint history (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Company, 2000), p. 425.
- Ensign, December 1991, p. 7.
- Liahona, May 2005, p. 126.
- LDS Church Almanac, 2008 Edition, p. 57.
- LDS Church Almanac, 2006 Edition, p. 502.
- LDS Church News, May 25th, 2005; August 5th, 1995.
