Edvardsen was just 18 years old when he was "born again" and began concentrating on miracles and spiritual awakenings. He founded an evangelical group, Troens Bevis Verdens Evangelisering, in 1965.
A former journalist for Norwegian Broadcasting (NRK), Erling Borgen, who made a film on Edvardsen, said the preacher was an advocate of dialogue among various religions. "I saw that up close when I followed him on trips through Pakistan, Israel and Burundi," Borgen told newspaper Aftenposten. "It made a deep impression."
Edvardsen was considered a great orator but also theatrical by his critics. He was active in broadcast preaching, with many programs directed at and aired in developing countries.
Politician Dagfinn Høybråten, head of the Christian Democrats party, called Edvardsen a "bridge-builder" between cultures and ethnic groups, and claimed he was better known outside of Norway than within the country. "I will remember him as a good friend and a mentor," Høybråten told news bureau NTB.
Newspaper VG reported that Edvardsen died at a hospital in Kenya Saturday. He'd travelled there on holiday from Zanzibar, and his daughter said he'd been weakened by a series of heart attacks and strokes in recent years.
