Sigurd Rudolf Guldbrandsen Bratlie (July 27, 1905 – January 24, 1996) was the leader of Brunstad Christian Church from 1976 until his death in 1996. Bratlie was born in

Nordstrand, Norway Nordstrand () is a borough of the city of Oslo, Norway. It borders Gamle Oslo in the north, Østensjø in the east and Søndre Nordstrand in the south. The borough is located in the southern part of the city and with a population of 52,459 people ...

and was the youngest of nine children. A

tailor A tailor is a person who makes or alters clothing, particularly in men's clothing. The Oxford English Dictionary dates the term to the thirteenth century. History Although clothing construction goes back to prehistory, there is evidence of ...

by trade, Bratlie met

Johan Oscar Smith Johan Oscar Smith (October 11, 1871 – May 1, 1943) was a Norwegian Christian leader who founded the evangelical non-denominational fellowship now known as Brunstad Christian Church. Early life and career Smith was born in Fredrikstad, Norway an ...

at a church service in 1920 while still serving his apprenticeship. He became an influential member, and later leader, of Brunstad Christian Church. He travelled widely as a

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...

and was the subject of international media attention when he was imprisoned for 143 days in

Baghdad Baghdad (; ar, بَغْدَاد , ) is the capital of Iraq and the second-largest city in the Arab world after Cairo. It is located on the Tigris near the ruins of the ancient city of Babylon and the Sassanid Persian capital of Ctesiphon ...

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

in 1978 for holding

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

meetings. He was also arrested for conducting missionary activity in

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

in 1974, a country then under the rule of dictator

Nicolae Ceaușescu Nicolae Ceaușescu ( , ; – 25 December 1989) was a Romanian communist politician and dictator. He was the general secretary of the Romanian Communist Party from 1965 to 1989, and the second and last Communist leader of Romania. He was ...

Published works

Bratlie wrote numerous articles, mostly published in the Norwegian Christian journal ''Skjulte Skatter''. He also authored several books, including ''The Bride, the Harlot and the End Times, The Grace that is in Christ Jesus, The Gospel of God, So Great a Salvation''. He is also the author of three hymns in Brunstad Christian Church's hymn book ''Ways of the Lord''.

References

1905 births 1996 deaths Norwegian Christian religious leaders Brunstad Christian Church Norwegian Protestant missionaries Prisoners and detainees of Iraq Prisoners and detainees of Romania Norwegian people imprisoned abroad Protestant missionaries in Iraq Protestant missionaries in Romania {{Christianity-bio-stub