Paul Harder is an ELCA pastor who served as a missionary in Indonesia during the 1990s. In 2002-2003 he lived on the Indonesian island of Sumatra while doing dissertation research on the Christian beliefs of the Lutheran members of Batak ethnic group. In the spring of 2005, Paul was called by the ELCA to visit the tsunami-stricken areas of Sumatra in order to assess the relief situation. He is a graduate of St. Olaf College and Luther Seminary. He served his seminary internship in Cairo, Egypt, where he met his wife Nelly.

(Bio from summer 2005)