Pastor Paulo Freire has been shepherding the congregation at Hope Church in New Jersey for over 25 years. He is a native of São Paulo, Brazil, but he was raised in New Jersey. As a graduate of the Moody Bible Institute, Pastor Paulo brings a love for the study and application of the Word of God to the pulpit with him. He and his wife Lisa live in beautiful Wantage, NJ. They have three sons: Tyler (a pastor in Beavercreek, Ohio) married to Jeanna, who together are raising their precocious children; Micah (on staff as a church music director in Burbank, California); and Elias (a student at Grove City College in Pennsylvania).

When he is not behind the pulpit or in his office at Hope, Pastor Paulo can be found preaching and teaching in other churches, speaking at summer camps, or traveling to foreign countries training others in the eternal truths of God’s word. He also delights in training pastors and laymen through the EFCA Gateway Theological Institute and working with both the District and National Boards of Ministerial Standing credentialing process.