Nathanael Blake

Postdoctoral Fellow

Nathanael Blake, Ph.D. is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center. His primary research interests are American political theory, Christian political thought, and the intersection of natural law and philosophical hermeneutics. His published scholarship has included work on Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Hans-Georg Gadamer, Alasdair MacIntyre, Russell Kirk and J.R.R. Tolkien. He is currently working on a study of Kierkegaard and labor. As a cultural observer and commentator, he is also fascinated at how our secularizing culture develops substitutes for the loss of religious symbols, meaning and order.

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Nathanael Blake, Ph.D. is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center. His primary research interests are American political theory, Christian political thought, and the intersection of natural law and philosophical hermeneutics. His published scholarship has included work on Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Hans-Georg Gadamer, Alasdair MacIntyre, Russell Kirk and J.R.R. Tolkien. He is currently working on a study of Kierkegaard and labor. As a cultural observer and commentator, he is also fascinated at how our secularizing culture develops substitutes for the loss of religious symbols, meaning and order.

Dr. Blake grew up in the Pacific Northwest, and received an undergraduate degree in microbiology with a chemistry minor from Oregon State University. After working as a writer and editor in the pro-life movement, he enrolled in graduate studies at the Catholic University of America, earning a doctorate in political theory. His dissertation was titled: “Natural Law and History: The Use and Abuse of Practical Reason.” Blake was a Richard M. Weaver Fellow of the Intercollegiate Studies Institute and served as an adjunct professor of American Government at Wheeling Jesuit University.

Dr. Blake is a Senior Contributor to The Federalist, where he has published over 150 pieces since 2017. His work has been published in a variety of publications, including Public DiscourseThe Catholic World Report, and National Review.

An evangelical Christian, Blake helps lead worship at his church—he particularly enjoys playing old hymns on double bass.

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Science Keeps Obliterating The Left’s Favorite Transgender Narratives

Nathanael Blake

The continued lack of evidence for ‘gender-affirming care’ is pushing gender ideologues to increasingly brazen lies as their position collapses.

Articles

The Federalist / March 6, 2024

Why Protestants Convert To Catholicism

Nathanael Blake

Conversions rarely begin from theological contemplation, but from a sense that Protestantism lacks something Catholicism has.

Articles

The Federalist / February 19, 2024

Leftists Say They Don’t Like Late-Term Abortions But Then Lament They Can’t Kill More Babies…

Nathanael Blake

Support for abortion has atrophied consciences so badly that its backers cheer elective abortions of healthy babies in the third trimester.

Articles

The Federalist / February 16, 2024

Love and dignity for Joe Biden

Nathanael Blake

Decent people do not encourage friends and family who are suffering from severe mental decline to attempt difficult jobs that are far beyond their capacity.

Articles

WORLD Opinions / February 12, 2024

Tolkien’s lessons for Hollywood’s failures

Nathanael Blake

Today’s writers, directors, and showrunners usually have a shallow understanding of human nature and know nothing more compelling than a few buzzwords and a desire to get paid.

Articles

The Catholic World Report / February 10, 2024

Defunding Child Sexualizers Like the Kinsey Institute Should Be A No-Brainer For Republicans

Nathanael Blake

The reflexive defense of Kinsey takes on more sinister overtones given the left’s renewed emphasis on viewing children as sexual agents, exemplified by its obsession with “LGBT kids.”

Articles

The Federalist / December 22, 2023

Cornered By Facts, Rabid Transgender Ideologues Lash Out With More Lies

Nathanael Blake

The purveyors of child sexual mutilation are worried. Those fighting against medically “transitioning” children have won a lot in the last year, and the transgender lobby is responding by lying even more.

Articles

The Federalist / December 5, 2023

Jew-Haters Loathe All Of Western Civilization, Not Just Israel

Nathanael Blake

Though there are plenty of politically liberal Jews, including in Israel, and though there have been many Jews who became leftist radicals, Jewish identity remains a threat to leftism.

Articles

The Federalist / November 29, 2023

The Biden Administration Is Scheming To Take Your Kids Away

Nathanael Blake

The Biden administration has proposed new rules for foster care, which would treat any parent rejecting LGBT ideology as a child abuser.

Articles

The Federalist / November 27, 2023

Men and marriage

Nathanael Blake

Risk-based aversion to marriage isn’t just wrong—it’s unmanly.

WORLD Opinions / October 25, 2023

Foreign Policy ‘Experts’ Ignore Hamas’ Religious Zeal For Jewish Genocide

Nathanael Blake

They genuinely believe that God wants them to exterminate the Jews and wipe Israel off the map.

The Federalist / October 19, 2023

How Trustworthy Are Medical Organizations That Rabidly Support Until-Birth Abortion?

Nathanael Blake

A recent column in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine is a perfect example of how activists are capturing the institutions of American medicine and corrupting its soul.

The Federalist / September 27, 2023