Michelle J. Morris

Michelle J. Morris was born in Stillwater, Oklahoma, but her family moved to Arkansas when she was 13. That led her to attend the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville, where she earned a B.A. in English and French and a Masters degree in Comparative Literature. During her coursework in that latter degree, she found herself trapped in Kimpel Hall during the shooting of her professor, Dr. John Locke, by a fellow student. In the course of confronting that tragedy, she discerned a call to ministry, longing to work for the peace of God to break out abundantly in the world.

Still, many who know her from her youth may be surprised that she is now a voice in Christianity. Growing up in the Bible belt South, she did not attend church regularly until she was 25. However, when she was 13, after a manipulative experience at a church lock-in, she decided to read the Bible for herself instead of being told by others what was in it. She likes to say now that in that moment, she was walking a razor's edge: either she would come out a pastor or an atheist. She read one chapter a night every night (2 chapters on Sunday), finishing the entire King James Bible in three years. At the end of that journey, she was in love with God, in love with the Bible, not sure about the church. She still feels much the same way, seeing the church as both a great gift and force for good in the world and also a broken body that too often hurts itself and others. For her, that is just more motivation to work diligently to help it be a force for good in the world.

To prepare for the writing of this biography, she asked the people who were ordained with her to share what they thought would be interesting for people to know about her. Their responses were inspired, so she shares them here, along with the interpretations of the truth that they point to about her, which she provides here:

"Your PhD focus is beyond interesting." Jacob L. (Jacob always remembers I wrote about sex, and I do know a significant amount about reproduction and birth control in the first century, because my dissertation was on infertility in the New Testament. I do have a PhD in Religious Studies as well as a Master of Divinity from Southern Methodist University in Dallas.)

"After being freed from the snake handling cult in Louisiana, [she] began [her] communist writings." Andrew K. (Andrew decided to take the instructions to be creative liberally, but I am Markan, which in my book Gospel Discipleship is explained as someone whose discipleship is driven by the Holy Spirit, which means I have some capacity for handling snakes - usually of the metaphorical kind. Also, I do write for communities. That's as communist as it gets. I have never lived in Lousiana, though. Just states all around it - Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Texas.)

"Went to battle with the HOA and won in order to get solar panels on her house." Jacob L. (Nothing to explain there. That is the Gospel truth.)

"Outlasted a whole department, created an online learning system, literally iron woman, heavy metal baroness." Daniel T. (Things have been crazy at work this year - I am in a conference level position in the United Methodist Church and we are in a bit of flux right now. But I have managed to launch an online learning system for our state in the midst of the craziness. And I also have hemochromatosis - I overabsorb iron, so I am iron woman. And due to a poker game in the early 20th century, my family owns the mineral rights under much of 7 counties in Oklahoma. It is divided among hundreds of descendants at this point, so don't think I am rich. My dad got a check for a nickel once from those rights.)

"3rd degree Jedi Master." - Jacob L. (I had to ask for explanation on this one, but then he reminded me about my Markanness and how I can feel the presence of the Holy Spirit in spaces - he likened it to feeling the Force.)

"[She] can leap theological chasms in a single bound." Andrew K. (Having not grown up in church, I often see things differently when approaching the Bible. It has made my interaction with the Bible a place of joy and dancing and creativity, an unbound space, which I love.)

"Can make a biblical literalist shiver with chills." Chase G. (The fact that I can read Hebrew and Greek is a problem for some literalists, as is the fact that I am a woman and a pastor. And then I deal with complicated interpretations at my blog, grownupbible.org, where the tagline is Taking the Bible Seriously, not Literally.)

"Gen X, but who cares?" Chase G. (Who cares, indeed...)