Although I only met him in person a few times over the course of some twenty years, I’m honored to have known Fr. Hans O. Andrӕ on this side of glory. He was, and is, a truly great man, and was an inspiring servant of the Word on this side of glory. As of today, February 13, 2023, after 89 years of labor in this fallen world, he is at rest in the Church Triumphant, as we await the resurrection from the opposite side of the veil.

I met him while on tour with the Concordia Theological Seminary Kantorei (a touring choir made up of seminarians). I believe it was 2002. We were in Pittsburgh, and we had just sung at Historic First Trinity. We were all assigned to stay with host families. While waiting to see where I would be staying, I was taking a look around the parish hall. Fr. Hans came to say hello. I noticed his accent and asked where he was from (I believe that is considered rude these days). He told me that he was from Sweden.

I was gobsmacked! For I had been studying Swedish with a couple of other seminarians so that we could translate some of the works of Bishop Bo Giertz. One of my fellow students was Bror Erickson - who has translated a good number of Giertz’s books into English. At any rate, I showed Fr. Hans my little Swedish book, and practiced with him a bit. He was rather surprised! I was surprised to learn that Fr. Hans actually knew Bishop Giertz!

To my delight, I was assigned to stay with the family of Hans’s son, the Rev. Eric Andrӕ, who was serving, and still serves, with the Rev. Dr. Doug Spittel at First Trinity. We became fast friends, and my colleagues back at school and I had even more resources for studying Swedish. In 2009, Eric brought his wife Paola and daughter Michelina to Gretna, Louisiana, and spoke at a retreat at my parish. We also attended a parade, and ate seafood. It was a wonderful visit.

Fr. Hans had ended up in the ELCA after coming to the United States. He recounted attending an ELCA convention, making a statement about the Bible being literally true, and was laughed at by the assembly. It was quite a blow for a pious Christian pastor. In time, he would retire, colloquize into the LCMS, and continue service in the Holy Ministry with his son and with Fr. Spittel at First Trinity.

Around 2004, Fr. Hans was translating the last chapter of Bishop Giertz’s Hammer of God into English. It was left out of the first edition. I told him that I wished I could read it. So, he mailed me the only copy of his handwritten translation! My wife and I were terrified that we would lose it, or something would happen to it. So we took turns typing the manuscript, and emailed it back to him. Fr. Hans was so kind as to mention us in the forward of the book. So I had the privilege of being one of the very first to read the ninth chapter of that great classic novella and devotional work in English - and from the hand of Fr. Hans. The current edition of Hammer includes his annotations, explanations, and introductory material.

Fr. Hans was always so delightful to talk to. He was an old school gentleman, but carried himself with joy, piety, and humility. He was always patient with questions concerning translation. It was his opinion that translations should be made by native speakers of the target language. He liked to laugh. He and his son Eric were as loving as any father and son could be. It was a delight to see the two of them together. What a grace that they were permitted to serve in the Holy Office together.

I pray for God’s comfort to the Andrӕ family, with my own comfort that they are confessors of the resurrection and the Good News that Hans proclaimed during his long, faithful sojourn and service as a präst and kyrkoherde, a priest and pastor (“church-shepherd”). We grieve, but not as those who have no hope!

At some point, the English District had published this biography of Fr. Hans:

Hans Andrӕ and his brother Göran, sons of Vanja (f. Johansson) and Anders Andrӕ, were born on Midsummer's Day June 24, 1933 in Trollenäs parsonage on Prästgårdsgatan 14 in Vimmerby, Sweden. In 1938, the family, including big brother Tord and little sister Berit, moved to the rectory Näs on Prästgårdsgatan 24.

Hans graduated from the gymnasium in Västervik in 1953, attended the platoon leadership school at I 12 in Eksjö 1953-1954, and conducted theological studies at Uppsala University 1954-1959. Holy Trinity Day 24 May 1959 Hans (with brother Göran) was ordained by Bishop Torsten Ysander in Linköping Cathedral. (Göran passed away on February 25, 1997, when he was pastor in Södra Vi and Djursdala.)

Hans Andrӕ held the following pastoral positions in the parishes of the diocese of Linköping: Tuna 1 June-27 Nov. 1959, Norrköping’s Ö. Eneby 1959-68, Norrköping's Matteus 1968-72, and Lönneberga 1972-79. Within the same diocese he also served as the president of the Church Coalition for Bible and the Confessions [Kyrklig samling], whose national chair was Bo Giertz.

From Aug. 1964 to March 1965, Hans stayed in the United States as a fellow of the Sweden-America Foundation. He first studied theology at Union Seminary in New York and then visited congregations and church institutions in Atlanta, St. Louis, Minneapolis, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Chicago.

On June 11, 1966, Hans was married to Sylvia Irvine in St. Mark’s Lutheran Church in Hagerstown, Maryland. Their first home was in Penn Hills, a suburb of Pittsburgh, where they worked at Zion Lutheran Church, Sylvia as organist and D.C.E., Hans as assoc. pastor.

In 1979-85, he served Gustaf Adolph's parish in New Sweden, Maine, and 1985-96 at Holy Trinity in Jeannette, a suburb of Pittsburgh. He became a proud U.S. citizen in 1988. As pastor emeritus since 1996, he had been a vacancy pastor in eight congregations, including St. Peter & St. Paul Lutheran Church in Central City for nearly two years; he provided pulpit supply to many others, including for the final time at Redeemer, Oakmont on Trinity IX, 2 Aug. 2015. Before First Trinity joined the English District in Oct. 2016, he served Circuit Visitor of the Pittsburgh Southwest Circuit of the Eastern District 2012 until 2013.

Hans has been responsible for a unique 70+-year journalistic contribution to his hometown newspaper, Vimmerby Tidning, reporting and commenting on everything from the school trip to Gothenburg in June 1946, “Church news from Tuna” - and many more articles, including “The inspiring works of art in Vimmerby church (July 2012) and “Who killed Jesus?’ (March 2013). The most comprehensive article was “My father - the parish pastor in Vimmerby” in the Christmas issue 1961. Many other articles and letters to the editor have been published in other periodicals, as well.

Hans Andrӕ has written a booklet, Yes to the Church's Pastoral Commission According to the Bible and the Confessions (Uppsala: Pro Veritate, 1979), defending the traditional and biblical position on a male-only pastorate. This contributed to his being elected that same year by the pastors of the Linköping diocese as an alternate for the national Church Assembly in Sweden, which had only 100 representatives for the entire 7.7- million-member church body.

In 2005 he translated the ninth and final chapter of Giertz’s classic novel, The Hammer of God. Five years later he translated the entirety of Giertz’s first book, Christ’s Church. He provided detailed introductory material for both books.

More details of his life can be found at his obituary here.

Lord God, Heavenly Father, we thank you for the life and service of your servant Hans. We thank you for receiving him into glory, and we pray for the comfort that only Your Son’s mercy can provide. We look forward to our glorious reunion in heaven, as well as the promise that we confess: “the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting.” Through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord. Amen.