Bio

Benjamin Groenewold teaches philosophy at LCC International University. As an undergraduate he studied at Dordt College, majoring in engineering and philosophy. He received his MA (on postmodernism, technological design, and Theodor Adorno’s understanding of creativity) and his PhD (on Jacques Ellul’s understanding of technical creativity and Hugh of St. Victor’s hermeneutic approach to mystery) from the Institute for Christian Studies (Toronto, Canada). His research interests are in the interconnections between technology and society, particularly as illuminated by Jacques Ellul’s and Soren Kierkegaard’s reflections on society and by twelfth century hermeneutics.

When Benjamin needs to explain why philosophy is important, he often uses this quote from Theodor Adorno’s essay “Why Still Philosophy”: “Philosophy that satisfies its own intention, and does not childishly skip behind its own history and the real one, has its lifeblood in the resistance against the common practices of today and what they serve, against the justification of what happens to be the case.” He and his wife, Tricia Van Dyk, contribute to this resistance by hosting a weekly Philosophy Night in their home, where students come together to ask big questions and share ideas. When not teaching and researching, Benjamin writes fiction, studies Taekwondo, plays panflute and hammer dulcimer, walks in the woods, and plays games with his family.