Michael's secondary education was in Pakistan. He studied economics, sociology and Islamic history at the University of Karachi, and theology at Fitzwilliam College and Ridley Hall, Cambridge. His interests have led him to research and study in several fields, including comparative literature, comparative philosophy of religion and theology at the Universities of Cambridge, Oxford, and elsewhere. He has taught at colleges and universities in the United Kingdom and Pakistan. Michael is an Honorary Fellow of St. Edmund Hall, Oxford and Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge. He is also a Senior Fellow of Wycliffe Hall, Oxford. Michael is Visiting Professor of Theology and Religious Studies in the University of Greenwich and on the Faculty of the London School of Theology (LST) affiliated to the Universities of Brunel and Middlesex, as well as the Oxford Centre for Mission Studies. Michael is the author of twelve books and of numerous articles on mission, ecumenism, the Anglican communion, and relations with people of other faiths (particularly Islam).