Br Colin Chalmers
The General Council has appointed as director of the General Archives Br Colin Chalmers of the Province of West Central Europe. From January 2014 he will replace Br Juan Moral, whose mandate has been extended to help facilitate the transition.
Br. Colin Chalmers' biography
Born in Glasgow, Scotland on 4th June 1948, Colin had his secondary education with the Marist Brothers at the well-known St Mungo’s Academy in the city. He did his novitiate in Dublin, Ireland in 1973 – 74 after training as a primary school teacher at a College run by the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur. In 1980, the year of his Final Profession, he graduated from the University of London with an Honours degree in psychology.
Colin describes his life as a Marist Brother as “extremely varied”, with most of it spent outside his own country. Teaching, counselling and spiritual guidance have been among the ministries which he has undertaken, as well as work with organisations helping homeless people, refugees and asylum-seekers either as a member of staff or as a member of Management Committees. Within his own Province of West Central Europe he has served as Superior in Marian College, Dublin, and on a number of Province Commissions as well as a French-English translator. Colin followed the English-language Patrimony Course at the General House in 2008. This coincided with completing his dissertation on a spiritual history of the Institute for a Master’s degree in Christian Spirituality from Sarum College, Salisbury, England. He feels that the Patrimony Course provided an excellent opportunity to carry out research in the Institute’s archives.
Colin was awarded the Master’s degree with Distinction the following year. In July 2008 he became Superior of Marist House, Glasgow and in October 2010 he was elected President of the Conference of Religious in Scotland.