Goði Þorsteinn Guðjónsson
ᛉ October 4, 1928 -
January 21, 2000 ᛦ
Goði Þorsteinn Guðjónsson was born on October 4, 1928, in Reykjavik, Iceland. He was an expert in Nordic studies, fluent in both Icelandic and English, a loving family man, trusted friend of Sveinbjörn Beinteinsson, and a founding Goði of the Ásatrúfélagið. He passed beyond the veil and joined his ancestors on January 21st, 2000.
As a child, he contracted tuberculosis, which physically impaired him for the rest of his life. Many of the treatments at the time left him physically scarred and debilitated, but he was said to never pity himself for this. With more time on his hands, he dove into his thoughts and thirst for knowledge—books, dictionaries, and later, computer technology became a large part of his life.
By all accounts, young Þorsteinn often spent more time in his mind than in the mundane. When he finished his primary education, he moved onto Reykjavik Junior College, and then onto the University of Oslo. He studied history, Latin, ethnography, and sharpened his already great knowledge of our Nordic ancestors.
He also learned a great deal about how to deal with the Icelandic parliament when making institutions legally-binding, and this is where much of his work with the Ásatrúfélagið comes in. It has been said that while Sveinbjörn Beinteinsson was the heart of the Ásatrúfélagið, Þorsteinn was the brain. He led the charge to get the organization legally recognized by Iceland and was present at the famous moment where Lord Þórr knocked out power across the nation during the meeting where the Lutheran Bishop finally gave the Ásatrúfélagið his stamp of approval.
As a man with a substantial understanding of Ásatrú, Goði Þorsteinn was the most trusted advisor of the Ásatrúfélagið’s first two Alsherjargoðar: Sveinbjörn Beinteinsson and Jörmundur Ingi Hansen both sought his counsel regularly. He was also a leading voice of Folkish Ásatrú in Iceland and is often cited as being the most outspoken proponent of recognizing Ásatrú as the native faith of the Aryan people.
Goði Þorsteinn was a man of great knowledge and ambition and piety, a beacon of right action for the Folk of the Ásatrúfélagið. Although he shouldered the heavy burden of tuberculosis and its consequences for his whole life, this never stopped his march to Victory for the Æsir.
May we all remain unbroken and undaunted in our loyalty to the holy Æsir!
Hail Goði Þorsteinn Guðjónsson!