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      NEW YORK (CWNews.com) - Father Malachi Martin, a Catholic priest and bestselling author of 16 books, died in New York City on Tuesday following a stroke and was buried on Thursday.

      Father Martin was born in Ireland in 1921 and entered the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) in 1939. He held numerous degrees from Trinity College in Ireland and the University of Louvain in Belgium. His early work included study of the newly-discovered Dead Sea Scrolls, publishing his first book on the subject. He then lived in Rome and served as a professor at the Pontifical Biblical Institute and was a close associate of Pope John XXIII.

      The priest, who was released from his Jesuit vows by Pope Paul VI in 1964, moved to New York where he authored his most famous books, including "Hostage to the Devil," "The Final Conclave," "Vatican," "The Jesuits," "The Keys of This Blood" and "Windswept House."

      At his death, Father Martin was reportedly at work on what he said would be his most controversial and important book, entitled "Primacy: How the Institutional Roman Catholic Church became a Creature of the New World Order." He had said the book would deal with power and the papacy, and analyze the shift in the ancient dogma of primacy that lies at the heart of what he saw as the first breakdown of papal power in two millennia.

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