St. Stephen's Armenian Apostolic Church sits in the heart of Watertown's Armenian neighborhood, the largest Armenian community on the East Coast. The parish on Artsakh Street is one of the most active Armenian Apostolic congregations in the United States, with weekly Badarak, three schools teaching in Armenian and English, and a Ladies Guild that has kept the parish fed and thriving for generations. Affiliated with the Eastern Prelacy of the Armenian Apostolic Church and the Holy See of the Great House of Cilicia, St. Stephen's is the only church within the Eastern Prelacy that sings the full Komitas Badarak on a weekly basis.
Born '33, Built '56, Blessed '57: Seven Decades on Artsakh Street
The parish began in 1933, when a determined group of faithful Armenians in greater Boston found themselves without regular spiritual care following a division in the Armenian Apostolic Church in America that year. They gathered for Badarak, baptisms, and other sacraments in a rented church building on Berkeley Street in Boston, continuing there until 1942, when the owner, a bank, decided to sell. With no resources to buy it, the small community was forced to look for a new home.
A committee formed in the early 1950s to find a suitable location, including Haroutiun Tashjian, Vahram Felegian, Hrach Tarbassian, Sarkis Chuchian, Aharon Nanian, Shavarsh Bedrosian, Siragan Bengoian, Haroutiun Sahagian, Megerdich Haroutunian, and John Kasparian. None of the churches they visited had the facilities they needed. On April 23, 1953, the membership meeting authorized the purchase of two plots of land on Elton Avenue in the heavily Armenian section of Watertown for $33,000. The street was later renamed Artsakh Street.
The broader Armenian-American community rallied to the cause. The Armenian Revolutionary Federation issued a communiqué urging local committees to support the effort, declaring that Boston, as the heart of the Armenian American population, must have a church appropriate to its position. The Armenian Relief Society and the Hairenik Daily joined in. To bridge the cost, Mihran Guzelian, Manoug Davidian, Garabed Nahigian, Levon Tufenkjian, and Khatchadour Yeghiazarian extended personal loans in addition to their gifts. A September 1953 banquet at the Musical Life hall in downtown Boston raised another $21,000.
The parish was incorporated on February 16, 1954, as the Armenian Apostolic Church of Greater Boston. The architect A.G. Manaselian prepared the design of the church, and Attorney Samuel Kalemian negotiated a $150,000 loan with Shawmut Bank at five percent interest. Groundbreaking came on June 6, 1956, with the blessing of the foundation performed by Rev. Archpriest Nishan Papazian, Rev. Archpriest Movses Shrikian, and Rev. Fr. Nerses Shahinian. The state Senate president, Senator Richard Furbush, joined political leaders and a large number of other invited guests at the ceremony. A March 1957 banquet at the Sheraton Boston Hotel, attended by 750 guests, brought in another $45,000 in pledges.
Just before the consecration, the National Representative Assembly at St. Illuminators Cathedral in New York unanimously petitioned the Great House of Cilicia to accept the Prelacy churches, clergy, and people within its care. Catholicos Zareh I of the Great House of Cilicia granted the request and sent Archbishop Khoren Paroyan, at that time the Prelate of Lebanon, to the United States as Catholicossal Legate. Archbishop Khoren arrived in Boston by air on October 17, 1957, and on October 20 performed the solemn service of consecration. Hundreds of faithful followed the spiritually moving services with tears in their eyes. The godfathers of the church were Bedros Asadourian, Mihran Guzelian, and Garabed Nahigian.
The parish's defining motto remains Born '33, Built '56, Blessed '57. In the years since, the parish has hosted five Prelacy National Representative Assemblies and Clergy Conferences. Major renovations have shaped the building: the dome and windows as they appear today, the arched entryway, the new façade and stairway with an elevator for those who cannot climb stairs, the wooden arch above the altar inscribed "I am the way the truth and the life" in Armenian and English, padded pews, air conditioning, new carpeting, a Khachkar from Armenia placed in the churchyard, and a reconstructed cupola shipped from Texas in 2006. The parish today has approximately 700 dues-paying members.
The Badarak and the Armenian Apostolic Tradition
Each Sunday, Badarak is celebrated at 10:00 am, with Requiem following at 11:30 am. The Badarak is the central act of worship in the Armenian Church, the Eucharistic service whose structure traces to the earliest Christian communities described by Ignatius of Antioch in his letters from the year 107. The service is structured around two parts. The first opens with the reading of Scripture and preaching; at its end, the deacon declares, "Let none of the catechumens and no one of weak faith, none of the penitents, nor the unclean, draw near to this divine mystery." In the early centuries, the unbaptized and unrepentant left the church at this moment. Today the entire liturgy is celebrated with the doors open, but the structure remains.
Holy Communion is celebrated with unleavened bread (nushkar) made of wheat flour and undiluted wine of the grape, consecrated during the Badarak. Communicants in the Armenian tradition receive both the bread and the wine together. The Armenian Church's liturgical music draws from a treasury of sharagans composed by Catholicos St. Nerses the Graceful and others, sung in classical Armenian.
The Armenian Church is among the non-Chalcedonian churches of the East. It did not accept the Council of Chalcedon in 451 because, in that year, Armenia was engaged in one of the defining struggles of its history, the Battle of Vartanants. The Armenian Church recognizes the Councils of Nicaea (325), Constantinople (381), and Ephesus (431), and the Synod of Dvin (505) formally aligned the Armenian Church with the other non-Chalcedonian churches.
The five cardinal feasts of the Armenian liturgical year, the Daghavars, are Christmas-Epiphany on January 6, Easter, the Transfiguration (Vartavar), the Assumption of St. Mary, and the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. The Armenian Church celebrates the birth and baptism of Christ together on January 6, a practice older than the later Western tradition of separating Christmas and Epiphany. Lent, Medz Bahk, begins on a Monday and continues forty days, extended through Holy Week (Avak Shapat) for a total of forty-eight days. The Divine Liturgy is performed with the veil drawn during Lent, directing attention to spiritual introspection.
The Seven Sacraments of the Armenian Church
The Armenian Church recognizes seven sacraments, ordered from the foundational to the pastoral. Baptism is performed by triple immersion in water in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Children are customarily baptized after eight or forty days of birth, in keeping with a tradition that Origen traced to the time of the Apostles. The godfather, or Gunkahayr, takes responsibility for the spiritual welfare of the one baptized. Confirmation follows immediately, with the priest anointing the baptized with meuron, the holy chrism, composed mostly of olive oil with balsam and other fragrant oils.
Penance, or Repentance, is performed by the priest using a written formula of supplications, songs, hymns, and prayers drawn from the Armenian liturgical tradition. Communion unites the communicant with Christ through the bread and wine of the Badarak. Matrimony, Besak or Crown, joins husband and wife as a sign of the union of Christ with the Church; in the ceremony bride and groom are crowned as king and queen. The Armenian Church discourages divorce except in cases of fornication, and marriage between close relatives is forbidden. Ordination is reserved to bishops; the candidate must be elected by the people and approved by the bishop of the diocese. The order of the sick is performed by a priest for those in danger of death, with repentance, prayer, and Holy Communion.
The Choir of Komitas
St. Stephen's is the only church within the Eastern Prelacy that sings the Komitas Badarak on a weekly basis. The tradition began before the 1957 consecration, when an appeal was made to the renowned composer, musician, and director Maestro Rouben Gregorian to organize the choir. Gregorian assembled a group of singers and musicologists who, in a few short months, prepared the rich and beautiful liturgy of Komitas for the consecration day. Their singing astonished and inspired the faithful.
The church's second choirmaster was Vartan Seraderian, a graduate of the Armenian Theological Seminary in Antelias, who served as a choirmaster for nearly seventy years in total, twenty-six of them at St. Stephen's. In 2005, Seraderian retired and received a testimonial from the Board of Trustees. Catholicos Aram I of the Great House of Cilicia honored him with the Mesrob Mashdots Medal for his contributions to Armenian education and the propagation of Armenian culture.
Today the choir numbers approximately twenty-five members, under the direction of Karen Aykanian-Demirjian, a longtime member of the choir and former assistant organist. Mrs. Aykanian-Demirjian has brought a youthful vigor to the choir and expanded its ranks with young new talent. She founded and directed several youth choruses in the Greater Boston area. The church's organist is Mrs. Mary Ann Kazanjian, who took over from Ms. Shake Aghoyan in 1997 after Aghoyan's four decades of service.
The choir is especially in need of men's voices, both tenor and bass, but welcomes sopranos and altos as well. Membership involves Sunday only, with occasional rehearsals before special events. Anyone who reads music or knows Gomidas liturgical music is invited to speak with Karen Aykanian-Demirjian or any choir member.
Three Schools, One Parish
St. Stephen's operates three schools under the jurisdiction of the parish. The St. Stephen's Armenian Nursery and Elementary School was founded in 1984 as a private, non-profit, bilingual preschool in response to a need in the community. It has expanded into a coeducational elementary school serving students from Preschool through Grade 5, ages two years nine months to twelve, with approximately 190 students. Core subjects at the elementary level are taught in English, while Armenian language and history are taught in Armenian, creating awareness of the culture and language.
The school is housed in the Armenian Cultural and Educational Center, whose site was blessed on November 6, 1977. The Center was blessed by Bishop Datev Sarkissian, Bishop Mesrob Ashjian, and visiting clergy from Lebanon on July 16, 1978, and completed in 1980. The school is accredited by the Association of Independent Schools in New England, and its students have achieved top scores in the Comprehensive Tests of Basic Skills. The current principal is Mrs. Houry Boyamian, who has led the school for nineteen years.
St. Stephen's Armenian Saturday School, in existence for more than seventy years, provides weekly instruction in Armenian language, history, and culture for students from kindergarten through high school. It was the first one-day school in the Eastern Prelacy to extend through grade 12, a milestone reached in 2002 under the direction of then-principal Mayda Melkonian and school committee chairman Misak Barsoumian. The school publishes the Shogher annual newsletter.
St. Stephen's Sunday School serves children from nursery through grade 12, with 125 enrolled and 14 teachers. It meets from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm on Sundays during the school year, parallel to the Badarak. Younger students (N-3) use the David C. Cook curriculum, which provides a Biblical foundation through Bible stories, crafts, and activities. Middle grades work with the "We Believe" curriculum, which addresses topics through the lens of the Armenian Church. Past high school units have included studies of the Gospel of Mark, an investigation of intelligent design, and an analysis of C.S. Lewis's The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. The 12th-grade intern year culminates the program, with interns serving in the area they choose.
The Sunday School takes seriously its role in community outreach. Students bring a weekly donation that sponsors orphans in Armenia. The school runs a winter coat drive, collects Lenten food for those in need in surrounding communities, visits a nursing home by bus to sing Christmas carols, and helps the Board of Trustees during the annual Church Clean Up Day. A Parents' Council organizes the Christmas Party, the Poon Paregentan luncheon, communion breakfasts, and clothing and food drives.
The Ladies Guild and the Heart of the Bazaar
Three years before the groundbreaking in 1956, on September 29, 1953, the Ladies Guild was formed. Its first executive consisted of Mrs. Makrouhi Guzelian, Chairlady, Margaret Nahabedian, Clara Russian, Margaret Kaloosdian, Araxie Chorbajian-Ayvazian, Mary Piroomian, and Anahid Changelian. The Guild met first in members' homes, with the hostess providing the luncheon or breakfast, before growing to a membership of 119 with monthly meetings in the Church Hall.
The Guild is the backbone of the parish's communal life. Bake sales, Lenten dinners, hokejashs (memorial meals), and major involvement in the annual bazaar are its core work, along with meals served when the parish hosts the National Representatives Assembly and visits to the Armenian Nursing Home in Jamaica Plain. The Ladies Guild is currently chaired by Becky Megerdichian, with Lucy Guzelian, Isabel Avedikian, Sona Iradian, Zabelle Hoosian, Deanne Nahabedian, Loren Elanjian-Baccari, and Mary Jelalian on the Executive.
Bazaar preparation is a major undertaking, with baking sessions for the pastry section on Tuesdays and Saturdays, and gourmet preparation on Fridays. The annual bazaar, now in its seventh decade, fills the Church Hall with kebab, gourmet delicacies, and sweets.
Salt & Light, the Altar, and Parish Youth
Salt & Light, the parish's youth ministry, is for young people ages 13-18 and gathers in small, gender-specific groups of five to ten, led by adult mentors known as youth ministry facilitators. The name comes from the Gospel of Matthew: "You are the salt of the earth... You are the light of the world." Materials are designed to engage contemporary topics from a Christ-centered Armenian perspective. Angie Ourfalian is the Youth Ministry Director.
The current altar service at St. Stephen's includes three deacons, one sub-deacon, and several altar boys. Deacons are Zadour Bedoyan, John Daghlian, and Jiro Iskenderian. The sub-deacon is Tavit Tormanian. Altar boys include Avedis Bell, Zaven Bell, Hagop Kechedjian, and Aram Stepanian. The parish is always looking for boys and girls to serve on the altar.
Affiliation with the Eastern Prelacy and the Holy See of Cilicia
St. Stephen's is affiliated with the Eastern Prelacy of the Armenian Apostolic Church, headquartered in New York City, and the Holy See of the Great House of Cilicia, located in Antelias, Lebanon. The Prelate is Archbishop Anoushavan Tanielian, who has served the Armenian Church in various capacities since his 1972 ordination, including in Lebanon, Philadelphia, New Jersey, and New York, and as founding director of the St. Gregory of Datev Summer Institute. He holds degrees from the Near East School of Theology, Princeton Theological Seminary, and Columbia University, and was consecrated a bishop on June 4, 2006, by Catholicos Aram I.
The supreme spiritual and administrative leader of the Armenian Church is His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians, at the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin in Vagharshapat, Republic of Armenia. Catholicos Aram I presides at the Holy See of the Great House of Cilicia in Antelias. The Armenian Church traces its founding to the mission of the Apostles Thaddeus and Bartholomew in the first century and to the illumination of St. Gregory the Illuminator, who in 301 AD helped King Trdat III proclaim Christianity the official religion of Armenia, making Armenia the first nation in world history to adopt Christianity as its state religion.
St. Stephen's pastor is Very Rev. Fr. Hrant Tahanian, whose baptismal name is Hovannes. Born November 10, 1987, in Montreal, Canada, in a family of descendants of Genocide survivors, he graduated from Soorp Hagop Armenian School in 2005 and continued his studies at Montmorency College. He attended the Armenian Theological Seminary in Antelias and was ordained as a celibate priest in 2010. After serving at the Catholicosate of the Holy See of Cilicia, he was appointed pastor of St. Gregory Church in Vancouver, British Columbia, in 2012. He completed a Master of Theology at the University of British Columbia. He became the Ecumenical and Inter-religious Officer of the Catholicosate of Cilicia in 2017 and was re-elected to the Central Committee of the World Council of Churches in 2022. In 2024, he was elected Co-Moderator of one of the WCC's Reference Groups on Overcoming Racism and all forms of Discrimination.
Pastor Emeritus is Rev. Archpriest Fr. Antranig Baljian, the first American-born priest of the Eastern Prelacy. Fr. Baljian graduated from the pastoral studies course at the Armenian Theological Seminary in Antelias and served at St. Stephen's as church deacon and secretary before his ordination. He taught in the Sunday School and Armenian Saturday School and served as pastor's assistant before taking on the pastorate in 1994.
Hall, Pastoral Care, and Membership
The Church Hall, with capacity for approximately 200 people for meetings or 150 for dinner, is available for rent. The hall is air-conditioned and includes a commercial kitchen with two large refrigerators and freezers, commercial sinks, an ice machine, a butcher block, and ample counter space. The hall accommodates meetings, hokejashs, classes, recitals, small concerts, and fundraisers. Members receive reduced rates. A small stage, tables, chairs, male and female restrooms, a foyer, and a coat closet are included.
The parish offers several pastoral services: house blessings, hospital visits, and special visits with the pastor. Requests are made to the church office by email or phone. The office is open Tuesday through Friday, 9:00 am to 3:00 pm. The Director of Communications is Tamar Kanarian.
St. Stephen's publishes the quarterly JRAK, sent to approximately 1,100 families. A weekly Sunday Program contains important announcements, requiem requests, and the day's scripture readings in both Armenian and English. Services are livestreamed on Facebook for those unable to attend in person.
Membership is open to all who wish to join the parish. Annual dues are $200 per individual or $400 per couple, paid in January. Members have voting rights at parish meetings and receive reduced fees for sacraments and hall rentals. Three membership forms are available: Individual, Family, and Student. Online giving is available for membership dues, requiem and hokehankisd donations, in lieu of flowers, memorial, weekly plate and candle, Faith in Action, Youghakin, Madagh, and general donations through the giving page.
The 2026-2027 Board of Trustees is led by Raffi Manjikian, Chair, with Lucy Hoosian, Vice Chair, Valerie Wise-Tucker, Treasurer, and Sonia Vartanian, Secretary. Members include Eric Guzelian, Steve Guveyan, Noushig Hagopian, Tamar Kanarian, Angelique Ourfalian, and Christine Stepanian. Astor Guzelian also serves on the Board.