Hanson graduated from Minnehaha Academy in 1964, and earned a bachelor's degree in sociology from Augsburg University in 1968.

He serves on the executive council on the executive board of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. Hanson is author of Faithful Yet Changing: The Church in Challenging Times (Augsburg Fortress, Minneapolis: 2002).

In 2007 Hanson was reelected on the second ballot, making him the longest-serving Presiding Bishop in the ELCA's history.

In 2005, he mourned the death of Pope John Paul II, especially for his contributions to the ecumenical movement.

Before the Hansons moved to Chicago, she was director of social work at Minneapolis and St. Paul Children's Hospitals.