On April 11, 2025, Khachkar Studios announced a $10+ million faith-based investment aimed at revitalizing Armenian church life in America. The initiative, which combines prayerful mission with strategic accountability, is designed to strengthen the Christian witness of Armenian churches and grow the number of Non-Holiday Badarak Faithful (“The Faithful”).
“The Faithful” refers to weekly churchgoers who attend Sunday Badarak outside of major feast days. According to data from 2024, only 13,000 Armenian Americans regularly participate in such services, just 3% of the community. This low participation places Armenian churches near the bottom among Orthodox Christian communities in the U.S. Khachkar Studios’ initiative seeks to remedy this through performance-driven stewardship. Inspired by the parable of the talents, the studio emphasizes that those entrusted with more are called to do more — and with greater intentionality. The core metric of success, KPI #1, tracks growth in “The Faithful”, while every financial decision is examined through the lens of Social Return on Investment (SROI).
Thirty-seven churches have been shortlisted for participation. Each will receive between $40,000 and $80,000 annually to execute eight pre-defined activities that include expanding Bible studies, training Christian role models, and conducting family home visits. These activities are detailed in the Pilot Briefing Packet, published in April 2025, which also includes comparative financial data on 164 Armenian churches.
The time requirement is minimal: just six hours weekly, shared among engaged arishioners. This ensures that even smaller communities can take part without overwhelming their volunteers or clergy. The program also addresses a media shortfall. Armenian churches have historically lacked the means or strategy for public outreach. Khachkar Studios is filling that void with seven dedicated media workstreams — including music, events, podcasts, and short videos — to spread the Christian message effectively. Their media investment is more than 25 times the combined spending of all Armenian churches in the U.S. Khachkar Studios is affiliated with the Charles & Agnes Kazarian Foundation, JIAnalytics, and Japonica Partners. Their model aligns Catholic principles of stewardship and subsidiarity with the operational rigor of modern philanthropy.
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This initiative could well become a template for faith-driven renewal, blending the Gospel imperative with the tools of strategic transformation-and empowering Armenian churches to lead more souls to Christ.
