Interview: Transformation Rooted in Legacy
Dr. Hratch Tchilingirian on Charting the Roadmap for the Western Diocese’s Next Century
By Sergey Arustamyan | MassisPost, October 15, 2025
For nearly a century, the Western Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church of North America has served as a spiritual and cultural anchor for Armenians across the Western United States.
In the second half of last year, the Western Diocese—under the leadership and guidance of Archbishop Hovnan Derderian, the Primate—launched its long-term Institutional Innovation project to modernize its organization for the purpose of making Christian faith and Armenian heritage relevant and vital across the diocese.
In this conversation, Dr. Hratch Tchilingirian, director of the Institutional Innovation initiative, reflects on why change is essential, how it is taking shape, and what has been done since his appointment a year ago.
Dr. Hratch Tchilingirian, a public scholar, university lecturer, and innovation executive, was appointed director of the initiative in June 2024. He brings over two decades of academic and leadership experience, having served at the universities of Oxford (2012–2024), Cambridge (2002–2012), and Inalco, Paris (since 2021). A prolific author and scholar, his work and publications on the Armenian Church, identity, culture, the Armenian diaspora, and Christian communities in the Middle East have been recognized in both academic and policy circles. His views and expert opinions have been quoted in major media outlets, including the BBC, The New York Times, Financial Times, Al Jazeera, and Fox News. From 2019 to 2024, he directed the Armenian Diaspora Survey, a flagship project of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, which engaged more than 13,000 participants across 50 communities in 10 countries.
Q: Dr. Tchilingirian, the Western Diocese has a long and rich history, how do you see its role today, nearly a century after its founding?
A: The Western Diocese has been the spiritual, cultural, and communal home for Armenians in the Western United States since 1927. For nearly a century, it has preserved the faith of the Armenian Apostolic Church while also nurturing the rich Armenian cultural heritage. It’s a place where generations have been formed, inspired, and connected. Today, the Diocese is the largest Armenian organization on the West Coast, with a network of parishes that serve thousands of families. However in a rapidly changing world, the challenge is not only to maintain traditions, it is to ensure that they remain alive, meaningful, and relevant for the present and next generation.
Q: You often speak about this being a pivotal moment for the Diocese. Why now?
A: We live in a time of rapid change. Social dynamics, technology, and cultural shifts are reshaping how people live, learn, and even practice faith. The Armenian Church cannot stand still—we must respond with vision and creativity. I wish to underline the critical role and leadership of the Primate, Archbishop Hovnan, who initiated the process of reimagining the Diocese for the future. Of course, we are not talking about change for its own sake; but about making sure that the Church remains a living, dynamic presence in the lives of the people in the communities under the Diocese.
Q: That brings us to the Institutional Innovation initiative. Can you explain its purpose?
A: The initiative is essentially a roadmap for renewal. We launched it in 2024 to help the Diocese become more dynamic and forward-looking. It’s about turning Christian faith and Armenian heritage into a lived experience—something you don’t just inherit, but live, share, and grow with. The Diocese should become an organization that is visionary, strategic, and bold—one that empowers leaders, revitalizes parishes, embraces technology, and creates platforms for learning and creativity. It’s about transforming our mission into an actionable movement.
One of the first things we did is to draft a renewed Mission, Vision, Strategy, and Values statement of the Diocese. In July 2024, we prepared and sent the document to over 300 stakeholders within the ecosystem of the Western Diocese, including parish council members, diocesan delegates, and parish community committee members. During a three-month review period, we received insightful comments, suggestions, and views from them. These were incorporated in the final version, which was adopted at the Diocesan Assembly in May of this year. As a result, we now have, on one page, the clearly articulated Mission, Vision, and Values of the Western Diocese. It provides a common roadmap for all the parish communities within the diocese. This was, in my view, a critical first step in the process of institutional innovation.
Q: The Western Diocese has a remarkable legacy. Why does it need “innovation” now?
A: In a few years time, the Western Diocese will celebrate the 100th anniversary of its founding. This legacy is our foundation, but it can’t be our ceiling. The Diocese has been a spiritual home since 1927, but today’s world is very different from a century ago. Social life, technology, even how people connect to faith—all have changed. If we want the Church to remain a living presence, not a museum of rituals, we must innovate. The Armenian Church cannot stand still. We either adapt with vision, or we risk becoming irrelevant.
Q: Let’s talk about leadership. How are you empowering leaders across the Diocese?
A: Leadership is at the heart of this initiative. We have more than a thousand active leaders—parish council members, diocesan delegates, deacons, teachers, and volunteers. They are our most valuable asset. To support them, we launched the Church Leadership Orientation Program in February 2025. It’s designed for parish leaders and runs every two months, helping them deepen their knowledge of the Church’s mission, traditions, faith, and deal with practical issues.
We also introduced the Altar Servers Leadership Program, designed for over 250 deacons and altar servers of the Diocese. This program provides theological, pastoral, and liturgical education. It equips them to serve with greater understanding and devotion. And through the Lay Ministry Program, we’re encouraging more parishioners to take active roles in church life. Together, these and other learning efforts are not just about training, but about transformation.
Leadership also extends in the very important and long-running educational mission of the Western Diocese. Today, the Diocese nurtures faith, language, and culture through its large network of Sunday, Saturday and Day schools, serving over 2,600 students with more than 220 teachers across 25 parishes.
Q: Parishes are the heart of community life. How is the Diocese reimagining parish engagement?
A: We launched the Innovating Our Parish initiative precisely for this purpose. This is the first among other steps. The goal is to help local parish councils and community committees to think through the process of revitalizing their parish life and plan practical steps to make their community a vibrant center of faith, fellowship, and culture. We created a guidebook for this, which helps parish leaders focus on faith formation, youth involvement, and community outreach.
In addition, we’ve held regional meetings—in Fresno, Los Angeles, and San Francisco—to explain these initiatives and address local issues. We are creating opportunities for parish leaders to come together to discuss new approaches and share best practices. These conversations are critical to build a culture of collaboration.
Q: Technology and media seem central to your plans. Can you tell us more about this?
A: Absolutely. Ongoing innovation, media content production and distribution are critical for the mission of the Diocese. We are building a new Innovation and Media Center at the diocesan headquarters. This is a very exciting project. The construction to add a second floor to the current building of the diocese is starting soon. The purpose-built, state of the art facilities will serve as a creative hub, where we use technology and storytelling to connect people to their faith and heritage. We want to reach especially younger generations where they are—on digital platforms—by producing engaging, faith-centered content that educates, inspires, and strengthens community. As important, the center will also serve as a hub where young people themselves will create and produce content, through storytelling, podcasts, filming, editing. The center will offer after school and vacation time training, masterclasses, and technical know-how seminars to young people in the community.
Q: Finally, what do you see as the path ahead for the Diocese?
A: The Primate has said many times that this is not just a plan—it’s a movement. That is exactly how I see it. The shift is happening and we’re witnessing it take shape, even if at a slow pace. Ultimately, this has to be a collective endeavor. Community leaders and members must engage with the process for their own success at the local level.