Reverend Christopher Merris

Fr. Christopher Merris is a Roman Catholic priest of the Diocese of San Diego, California. He retired from the Navy in September 2018 after 21 years as a chaplain. He is a native of San Diego.His educational background includes a Masters degree in theology from the University of Louvain, Belgium, and a Masters in Marriage and Family Therapy from the University of San Diego. He is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in California. Prior to the military, he worked in private practice focusing principally in areas of child development. He also co-authored a book on troubled marriages entitled If Only You Would Change: What to do When Your Marriage Isn’t What You Thought It Would Be. Fr. Merris was board certified as a clinical pastoral counselor in 2012. While on Active Duty, Fr. Merris deployed on multiple occasions with the Navy and Marine Corps to Afghanistan and Iraq. He served aboard USNS Mercy for Pacific Partnership 2010, which took them to countries like Vietnam, Cambodia, Indonesia and Timor Este. He retired from Camp Pendleton as the Marine Corps Installations West Chaplain.Fr. Merris brings the spiritual component to the Semper Fi family. His extensive experience both from being “boots on the ground,” as well as his clinical and pastoral background convinces him of the important role hope plays in not just recovery but in thriving in life.Fr. Merris enjoys cooking, gardening, playing guitar, riding motorcycles and studying languages.