Michael J. Morris, PhD
Biblical Scholar & Author
Walk in, Monsieur; walk in, and welcome!
Excuse me for not admitting you at first: but there are so many rogues about this place.
Matthew Lewis, The Monk (1796)
Professor Michael J. Morris is a biblical scholar and author exploring the intersections of faith, language, and mystery. This site features his fiction and academic works.
The First Silence
"Not a language that evolved gradually into the linguistic families we know today, but one shattered by divine will. Torn apart by God, who deemed mankind unworthy to wield it."
A haunting, cerebral debut novel that moves from the quiet courtyards of Trinity College Dublin to the shrouded archives of the Vatican, from forgotten places to the sacred ground of Iona... where faith, history, and obsession converge.
Daniel, a Trinity College graduate student lost in his discernment, spends his days deciphering old languages under the mentorship of the enigmatic Professor Ashcroft. He goes about his quiet and studious tasks, until a letter from a long-lost friend arrives. What begins as a scholarly pursuit becomes stranger, as Daniel follows a thread that leads him far from Dublin into the heart of Catholic power and toward the edges of his own certainty.
The First Silence is a meditation on the unavoidable violence of pride. The novel traces the fractures of modern sainthood, Church scandal, and the shadows that even sacred institutions cannot see.
Published Works
Academic scholarship that informs the fiction
Warding Off Evil: Apotropaic Tradition in the Dead Sea Scrolls and Synoptic Gospels
Wissenschaftliche Untersuchungen zum Neuen Testament, Book 451
In this study, Michael J. Morris examines aspects of synoptic gospel demonology; specifically, human responses to demonic evil. It is clear that early Christian demonology can be more fully understood against the background of early Jewish traditions.
In the Dead Sea Scrolls, there are two fundamental ways by which protection against demons is sought. The first anti-demonic method is 'exorcism,' and the second is characterized by its preventative nature and is typically referred to as 'apotropaism.'
Morris offers a timely examination of apotropaic tradition in early Judaism and its significance for demonological material in the synoptic gospels, showing how these findings have broader implications for understanding evil, eschatology, and the depiction of Jesus.
Recent Articles
Selected peer-reviewed scholarship
The Unseen Realm: Demonology in Qumran and the Synoptic Gospels
Catholic Biblical Quarterly (2016)
Apotropaic Prayer and the Synoptic Tradition
Mohr Siebeck (WUNT)
"Names of Authority in the Demonologies of Ancient Judaism and Christianity"
Contribution in Ideas of Possession: Interdisciplinary and Transcultural Perspectives, (OUP, 2024).
Copyrighted material.
About the Author
Dr. Michael J. Morris brings a unique perspective to the thriller genre, combining his extensive academic background in biblical studies with a talent for crafting compelling narratives that explore the intersection of language, history, and the unseen spiritual realm.
With a doctoral degree in biblical studies and years of research into early Christian demonology, Morris has published on topics ranging from Jewish angelology in the Dead Sea Scrolls to the development of early Christian anti-demonic traditions. His academic work provides an authentic foundation for the supernatural and historical elements that drive his fiction.
Morris earned his Ph.D. in Biblical Studies from the University of Dublin, Trinity College, and his M.A. in Scripture from Augustine Institute. He has taught Scripture and theology for the St. John Vianney Theological Seminary, the University of Mary, and Holy Apostles College and Seminary. He served as a contributing writer for the Augustine Institute's Bible in a Year and Word of Life curriculum projects, and is the author of "Warding Off Evil: Apotropaic Tradition in the Dead Sea Scrolls and Synoptic Gospels." His scholarly work has appeared in the Catholic Biblical Quarterly and other academic publications.
When he's not writing or teaching, Morris enjoys exploring the connections between ancient texts and modern storytelling, believing that the greatest narratives reveal timeless truths about the human condition.
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