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The man known to Christians around the world as Brother Andrew, who was responsible for smuggling Bibles into communist countries, died Tuesday. He was 94.
His Dutch name was Andrew van der Bijl, an evangelical who became the founder of Open Doors U.S.A. But on its website, the ministry described him this way:
“We often describe Brother Andrew as the founder of Open Doors. But referring to him as ‘the founder’ could lead people to picture him as a suit-wearing executive who delivers presentations in a boardroom. That image, however, couldn’t be further from the truth. In actuality, Brother Andrew is our chief adventurer and lead risk taker. He’s best known, in fact, for courageously putting his life on the line to smuggle Bibles behind the Iron Curtain at the height of the Cold War.”
The news of van der Bijl’s death was first reported by Netherlands Dagblad. A spokesman for Open Doors confirmed his death to the newspaper.
Van der Bijl first garnered the world’s attention in 1967 with the publishing of the book God’s Smuggler.
In the book, Brother Andrew gave his account of how he smuggled Bibles into countries right under the noses of unsuspecting border guards hidden in his Volkswagen Beetle.
