Meet Our Pastors
Pastor Andrew J. Abraham
Rev. Andrew J. Abraham, who prefers to be called Pastor Andrew, was born in Wyandotte, Michigan, but moved with his family to Tennessee when he was ten years old. Immediately after graduating from high school, his Army Reserve unit was deployed to the Persian Gulf where he served as a soldier in Operation Desert Storm (1991). Returning from that war, he entered a Roman Catholic seminary and was eventually ordained to the priesthood in April of 2000. After a few years, he left the priesthood and planned to go into education. Soon he discovered Lutheranism and was profoundly inspired by the life and theological insights of Martin Luther. While engaged to Monique, he took instruction with her, and they became Lutherans together in 2004 in the same church where they would be married the following weekend. It would not be long after getting married that Pastor Andrew felt moved to go back into the ministry, this time as a Lutheran pastor. He was colloquized by the Missouri Synod in 2008 and has happily served Lutheran congregations ever since. In addition to being a husband, father and pastor, Pastor Andrew loves to study theology and classic literature- the writings of novelists and poets. He also dearly loves to fly fish for trout on the Caney Fork River. One of his most cherished pastimes is planning and offering Bible studies and theological lectures. Pastor Andrew and Monique have three wonderful sons: Andrew II, Gabriel and Atticus. They are excellent young men who make their parents very proud!
Associate Pastor
Tim Hunze
Pastor Hunze was born in Tampa, Florida, but spent most of his youth in both Birmingham, Alabama and Knoxville, Tennessee. He has called Nashville home since 1988. He is a graduate of Middle Tennessee State University with a B.S. in Mass Communication with minor in Recording Industry Management. He began his ministry as a Deacon at Cross of Life Lutheran Church in Antioch, Tennessee in 2000. When Cross of Life merged with Spirit of Joy to become Hope Lutheran, Deacon Hunze continued to serve for the new congregation. In 2015, Tim joined Emmanuel Lutheran and continued to serve them as Deacon. January 2018, after two years of preparing, he was approved to join the Roster of Specific Ministry Pastors. Pastor Hunze was ordained and installed as the Associate Pastor at Emmanuel Lutheran in May 2018.
He is currently overseeing the children and youth ministries here at Emmanuel Lutheran. He married Leslie Williams-Hunze in 1992. They have been blessed with two daughters: Blakely and Isabella.
