Welcome!

(What the title says.)

About the Blog
I'll get straight to the point. I really enjoy philosophy and theology, and I enjoy writing about it and discussing it with others. For some time, I've used Facebook as a medium for those discussions, but it has recently been suggested to me that I start a blog. I've decided to act on that suggestion; so, here's the blog.

The title of the blog is "I have sought your precepts." This comes from Psalm 119:94, where David pleads, "I am Yours; save me, for I have sought Your precepts." I realize various individuals have 'life verses,' or verses that they believe are particularly directing for their lives. I suppose Psalm 119:94 qualifies as my 'life verse,' since it is particularly directing for my life (although I don't claim it's the most 'directing'). However, it seemed fitting as a blog title for at least two reasons: first, because this is a blog aimed at philosophical and theological clarity, where many of the 'precepts' of God are sought; and second, because this is a blog by me, and I find this verse both motivating and descriptive of my philosophical and theological pursuits.

About Me
I was born and raised near Atlanta, Georgia, and upon completion of high school I attended Cedarville University in Ohio. After switching majors a few times, I became a philosophy major. I loved, and still love, studying philosophy, and I will be attending Wayne State University this fall to begin my master's work in philosophy. Hopefully, after a successful semester or two, I'll be admitted to Wayne State's doctoral program in philosophy, after which I plan to seek (and hopefully obtain) a collegiate teaching position.

In philosophy, my primary areas of interest are (more or less in this order): moral philosophy, epistemology, philosophy of religion, and metaphysics.


Two Disclaimers
First, I plan to post various articles, videos, and other intriguing links on this blog, largely for the purpose of learning. At times, you'll see articles that advocate certain positions, some of which might concern you (or delight you). Well, keep in mind as best you can the following comment, and curve your concern (or delight) accordingly: I by no means agree with all of the contents of all of the links that I post. In the past, I've posted various links and people have inferred (wrongly) that, if I post something, I must be endorsing it. My hope is that such inferences will be nonexistent, or at least extremely rare, and that this disclaimer will be helpful to that end. (See below for an important caveat.) However, I realize that this will be only the first of likely many posts, and most readers are unlikely to read each and every post. Unfortunately, that reduces the likelihood of this disclaimer being a 'once-for-all' disclaimer. Consequently, to take stronger measures to make my position clear, I will make a similar disclaimer on each and every of the various links I post.

Second, although you shouldn't infer that if Blake posts some link where the contents support some viewpoint V, then Blake believes V is true, I encourage this inference when it comes to any personal comments I make on the blog. For example: If the discussion is about universalism and someone claims, "Universalism makes the atonement pointless," then if I make a comment in response to this individual, it is what I believe is the truth. Perhaps I'll say, "That's not true. Universalism doesn't at all entail that the atonement is pointless," then I actually am denying that the person's objection succeeds for the reasons I give. So, feel free to take my comments seriously in this respect. And now for the caveat: Although you shouldn't infer that I endorse the contents of just any link I post, there will likely be occasions where it is justifiable for you to infer that I endorse the contents of a particular link. For example, I intend (on occasion) to post papers that I have written, in which case you may (and should!) infer that I affirm the contents of those papers.

As a simple and hopefully helpful rule of thumb: When I claim something (even in a paper), infer that I mean it; otherwise, don't.


Comments and Requests
If you leave any comment(s), please see to it that your comment is thoughtful but also loving, or at least compatible with what you reasonably believe would result in a loving impression for those who read your comment. If this is unclear, the following example should make things sufficiently clear: If it seems to you that someone who reads your comment would feel unloved and/or hated by you, then refrain from posting that comment, at least for the time being. (If things seem otherwise later on, then don't hesitate unless there's some other relevant reason not to post.) Conversely, if it seems to you that your comment would leave a loving impression on readers, then by all means please post. I reserve the right to censor any comments that I believe fail to be loving. In short, be loving in all that you do, even (and perhaps especially) toward those with whom you disagree.

Also, be thoughtful. I almost surely will censor comments that strike me as attempts at irrelevance (such as someone bringing up how apples taste during a discussion on universalism). I realize we all get off-track sometimes. That's fine - just don't do it on purpose. Comments should be aimed at serious, rigorous questions and claims. Those who make claims should make an attempt to justify (i.e., provide evidence for) those claims.

I realize people might want to discuss a particular issue, or would like to see some information on a particular issue. Feel free to make requests, so as long as those requests meet the above requirements.


Enjoy!


Blake Hereth