Q1. How did you become a Christian and why are you Orthodox? A1. I am actually cradle Orthodox, but I only really started actively participating in the life of the Church when I was 10 or 11 years old. The reason why I am choosing to stay Eastern Orthodox out of all other denominations, is that it just makes more sense to me in regards to Scripture and the traditions and theology of the Early Church. Q2. How are we saved? A2. Salvation is a freely-given gift of God's Grace, meaning we can do nothing to merit it or put God in debt, in the same way a physician gives medicine not necessarily because we did anything to earn it. However, in order for it to be of any use, we must work in synergy with God's Grace using our free-will in a process known as theosis, in the same way that one cannot simply be healed from receiving the prescription from the physician's hands, but by being willing to take it and following any other orders from the physician. Q3. What do you believe about Satan? A3. Satan was originally a high-ranking angel (either a seraph or cherub). Because of envy, he became a fallen angel, and even took some angels down with him. From the fall of Adam and Eve, he served as a prosecutor before God against humanity, and is even able to access heaven to make his accusations. Scripture attests to this role when he accuses Job in the Book of Job, and against Joshua the High Priest, in Zechariah 3. However, Satan did not take this prosecutorial role out of love for justice, but deep hatred against humanity. After the Triumphant Ressurection, Christ defeats Satan and frees humanity from sin and death, thereby barring him from entering heaven nor being able to accuse humanity again. He now, with his angels, continue to seek to bring as many humans to desolation as possible before the fearful Day of Judgement by tempting them into sin. Q4. Is it important to spend time with God, and if so, why? A4. It is important to spend time with Him. That is a major integral part of that process of theosis. Q5. What do you think about being a LGBTQ+ and a Christian? A5. That is completely incompatible with Christianity, because it subverts the natural order of love set out by God. Q6. What is the difference between justification and sanctification? A6. Orthodoxy does not make a sharp distinction between the two as does Western Christianity. We view the two as interconnected parts of theosis. Q7. How will you react if someone who doesn't agree with you will argue about your religion? A7. I will argue back and defend it. "earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints." (Jude 3:3c) Q8. How will you respond to difficult questions, rude behavior, controversial comments, etc? A8. I will respond in a way that is respectful and remains within the bounds of the Scratch Community Guidelines. If I see an infraction on the latter, I will give a gentle reminder and report for repeated offenses. Q9. What experience do you have in leadership roles? A9. I currently serve as the President of the Second Council of Scratch, and as the Chairman of its manager board. Q10. How active will you be in OHQ? Will you be regularly delegating your time to OHQ, understanding failure to do so may cause a demotion? A10. I plan to be active on Scratch year-round, and I can delegate a good portion of my time to OHQ Q11. Why do you want to be a manager? A11. I want to make sure the rules are upheld and that this studio does not end up dead like a lot of other Orthodox studios unfortunately have.
