Bo Giertz
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Bo Harald Giertz (31 August 1905 Räpplinge in Öland – 12 July 1998 in Gothenburg), was a Swedish Confessional Lutheran bishop and Christian novelist.
Giertz' characteristic combination of the pietistic type of care of souls with his High Church Lutheran theology, which can also be noticed in his novels, made him listened beyond boundaries. It also made his novels as well as non-fictional books about christian faith popular in all Scandinavia.
Most famous of his novels is The Hammer of God (Stengrunden, 1941). (Translated by Clifford Ansgar Nelson and Hans O. Andrae. Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress, 2005. Also appeared in 1960 and 1973).
After the Swedish parliament's and the Church Assembly's decision on the ordination of women in the Church of Sweden, Giertz became a leader of the opposition.
Giertz was a pioneer on advocating regular celebration of the Mass on Sundays, something that was not usual in the Church of Sweden at that time. He also strongly recommended ministers to regular prayer according to the Divine office, which he unerringly applied in his own devotional life.
Giertz is still a beloved example for many Lutheran ministers, both within and outside Sweden.
[edit] External links
- Life of Bo Giertz by The Rev. Hans O. Andrae
[edit] Bibliography
Die Kirche Jesu Christ. Erlangen: Martin-Luther Verlag, c1985.
The Hammer of God: A Novel about the Cure of Souls. Translated by Clifford Ansgar Nelson. Minneapolis: Augsburg Publishing, 2005. ISBN 0-8066-5130-X. Revised edition.
