Paul Ciholas
(June 29, 1930 —May 10, 2026)
Sarasota, Florida, USA
Paul Ciholas was born in France after his parents fled religious persecution in Eastern Europe. His parents came from the old Austro-Hungarian Empire which is now part of Ukraine. At the age of nine, Paul’s schooling stopped abruptly because WWII began. At fourteen, he descended into the coal mines like his father and brother before him. Seven years later he resumed his schooling in Paris and passed the French “bac” (BA) exam in philosophy and went to an international seminary in Rüschlikon, Switzerland where he graduated with a degree in theology in 1959.
His career as a minister began in Strasbourg, France where half the congregation spoke German and half spoke French. During his five-year ministry in Strasbourg, he also studied theology at the University of Strasbourg and earned a Ph.D. in philosophical theology at age thirty-two.
He served as minister to churches in Strasbourg, Paris, and Washington D.C. While Paul was interim pastor at Briggs Memorial Baptist Church in Washington D.C., he was invited to open the U.S. Senate Session with prayer on June 7, 1967.
After teaching the New Testament for a year at a Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, he taught courses in theology and philosophy at Campbell University in North Carolina. At the University of Kentucky, he taught the history of ideas in the Honors Program and developed similar courses for Kentucky State University where he directed the Institute for Liberal Studies.
Paul is the author of four books, scholarly articles in French and English, and several studies of Greco-Roman antiquity and early Christianity.
Paul also had a special passion for woodworking. Creating beautiful furniture provided a satisfying balance to his work as professor, theologian, and writer. Paul made most of the furniture for the family and built two houses and a separate shop.
He is survived by his wife Karin Nordenhaug Ciholas, by two sons, Mike and Phil, by two daughters-in-law Deborah Hwang and Bonnie Johnson, by his brother Jean Ciholas, three sisters-in-law, and by many nieces and nephews.
A Celebration of Life will be held in Sarasota on September 19 and live streamed.
