At that time in Nigeria, almost all priests were foreign missionaries. Few Africans were being ordained to the priesthood. The foreign missionaries were generally unwilling to live in the same poverty or conditions that the native-born Nigerians endured; as a result, if an area wanted a parish priest, the local people had to raise enough money so that the priest could live well. This included building a church and rectory (which rather than adobe or mud, could be brick or concrete, with two stories and a zinc roof) and buying: a car, scooter or bicycle for the priest’s use; European style foods including wine, chicken, tea, coffee, sausages, peas, potatoes, and imported foods; etc.[citation needed]
As Black priests became more common, some followed the lifestyle of the foreign missionaries. Monks and nuns also lived more comfortably than most Nigerians, and some people began looking at taking holy orders as a priest, monk or nun as a way to escape poverty.[5]
Michael was ordained a priest of the Archdiocese of Onitsha on 19 December 1937. When he became a parish priest, he lived a very austere life in comparison to the other priests around him. He built his own home using adobe, mud brick or other traditional materials. He would sleep on any bed, even if it was uncomfortable. He would eat even poorer food than what the local people ate, surviving on tiny portions of yam. He sometimes had a motorbike provided to him, but he often preferred to use a bicycle or even just to walk. He was not deterred from doing his work by tropical rainstorms.[5]
His lifestyle shocked the Nigerian Catholics, who were not accustomed to this kind of priest. He became extremely popular and loved among the four parishes that he served in: Nnewi, Dunukofia, Akpu/Ajalli, and his home town Aguleri. He organized the community to help the poor and needy, and he personally would help people to build their own homes or perform other projects. He was very good at building homes, and taught people new building techniques, with adobe or mud brick, that were copied and used by the whole community. He was remembered as always being very kind.[5]
He also stood up against oppression of women within the traditional culture and advised women to fight back against those who would rape or mistreat them. On one occasion, a female parishioner was attacked by a group of males, and she fought back against them. Fr Michael, who was nearby, came on his bicycle and joined with her and fought them until they fled. He then encouraged her to bring the assailants to court, which she did, winning the case against them and forcing them each to pay her four pounds; this case was a milestone in the establishment of women’s rights in Nigeria.[5]
He was unyielding in confronting vice among his flock. He had a special interest in preparing young women for marriage. With the help of local nuns, the women were taught about Christian marriage and how to care for the children they would have.[8] He would organize the community to place the bride to be in a special home wherein she would be looked after until she got married. He would not allow men to see their brides before they got married, and if the groom attempted to go there without Fr. Tansi’s permission, he could be penalized. He also had a women’s group organized, who would enforce disciplines on their own members to avoid premarital sex and deter abortion. He was also a very strict disciplinarian with students who failed to work hard at the parish school, to the point of hiding near the school, waiting for the bell to ring, and then, when he saw students coming late, coming out of his hiding place and penalising them for coming late to school.[5]
He also was opposed to some aspects of the traditional pagan culture in Nigeria, especially the masquerades, who were believed to be spirits and used to punish innocent people at times. Nigerian pagans had murdered his own mother after claiming she was a witch who had caused mischief.[5]
He gave the community advice and teachings about the right way to live in a practical fashion. For example, there were many mango trees in his locale, and it was common for people to go to the trees and throw rocks at the fruit. In the process, they would knock down far more than they were going to eat, or knock down the unripe fruit along with the ripened fruit, thus denuding the tree before the season was over. Michael considered this very wasteful, and told his parishioners to pluck each mango individually so that nothing was wasted and that they would not lack mangoes to eat later.[5]
He was also remembered as being a perfectionist, which sometimes caused resentment among those under him. Later, his experience as a novice monk would give him insight into his earlier strict methods.[5]