-
29Nietzsche's Musical Askesis for Resisting DecadenceJournal of Nietzsche Studies 34 (1): 28-46. 2007.
-
36The Fundamental Heteronomy of Jazz ImprovisationRevue Internationale de Philosophie 4 (4): 453-467. 2006.
-
Appropriating Westphal appropriating Nietzsche : Merold Westphal as a theological resourceIn B. Keith Putt (ed.), Gazing through a prism darkly: reflections on Merold Westphal's hermeneutical epistemology, Fordham University Press. 2009.
-
42The “Thinking-After” of MetanoiaPhilosophy and Theology 16 (2): 217-228. 2004.Although Breton barely mentions the term “metanoia,” it well describes the radical change that takes place for anyone who adopts the logic of the cross. In effect, that logic results in a self that is radically de-centered. Moreover, to embrace that logic is to give up the demand for both reasons and signs. Arguing for a radicalconception of kenosis, Breton insists that it is a true emptying that remains powerless and senseless in light of any worldly logos and, as such, can only appear to be fo…Read more
-
8Notes onIn Theodore Gracyk & Andrew Kania (eds.), The Routledge Companion to Philosophy and Music, Routledge. 2011.
-
9Graven Ideologies: Nietzsche, Derrida & Marion on Modern IdolatryInterVarsity Press. 2002.What do the philosophers Friedrich Nietzsche, Jacques Derrida and Jean-Luc Marion have in common with Christianity? Surprisingly, they are all concerned about idolatry, about the tendency we have to create God in our own image and about what we can do about it. Can we faithfully speak of God at all without interposing ourselves? If so, how? Bruce Ellis Benson explores this common concern by clearly laying out the thought of each of these postmodern thinkers against the background of modern philo…Read more
-
17Transforming Philosophy and Religion: Love's Wisdom (edited book)Indiana University Press. 2008.Norman Wirzba, Bruce Ellis Benson, and an international group of philosophers and theologians describe how various expressions of philosophy are transformed by the discipline of love. What is at stake is how philosophy colors and shapes the way we receive and engage each other, our world, and God. Focusing primarily on the Continental tradition of philosophy of religion, the work presented in this volume engages thinkers such as St. Paul, Meister Eckhart, Kierkegaard, Husserl, Heidegger, Ricoeur…Read more
-
103The Improvisation of Musical Dialogue: A Phenomenology of MusicCambridge University Press. 2003.This book is an important contribution to the philosophy of music. Whereas most books in this field focus on the creation and reproduction of music, Bruce Benson's concern is the phenomenology of music making as an activity. He offers the radical thesis that it is improvisation that is primary in the moment of music making. Succinct and lucid, the book brings together a wide range of musical examples from classical music, jazz, early music and other genres. It offers a rich tapestry incorporatin…Read more
-
49Kierkegaard and Nietzsche on the Best Way of Life: A New Method of EthicsNew Nietzsche Studies 9 (3): 229-229. 2015.
-
4Chrétien on the call that woundsIn Bruce Ellis Benson & Norman Wirzba (eds.), Words of life: new theological turns in French phenomenology, Fordham University Press. pp. 208-221. 2010.
-
36The Two-Fold Task of Christian Philosophy of ReligionFaith and Philosophy 32 (4): 371-390. 2015.
-
28Pious Nietzsche: Decadence and Dionysian FaithIndiana University Press. 2007.Bruce Ellis Benson puts forward the surprising idea that Nietzsche was never a godless nihilist, but was instead deeply religious. But how does Nietzsche affirm life and faith in the midst of decadence and decay? Benson looks carefully at Nietzsche's life history and views of three decadents, Socrates, Wagner, and Paul, to come to grips with his pietistic turn. Key to this understanding is Benson's interpretation of the powerful effect that Nietzsche thinks music has on the human spirit. Benson …Read more
-
64Heidegger's philosophy of religion: From God to the GodsResearch in Phenomenology 38 (3): 447-454. 2008.
-
4The prayers and tears of Friedrich NietzscheIn Bruce Ellis Benson & Norman Wirzba (eds.), The phenomenology of prayer, Fordham University Press. pp. 73-87. 2005.
-
16Liturgy as a Way of Life: Embodying the Arts in Christian WorshipBaker Academic. 2013.How do the arts inform and cultivate our service to God? In this addition to an award-winning series, distinguished philosopher Bruce Ellis Benson rethinks what it means to be artistic. Rather than viewing art as practiced by the few, he recovers the ancient Christian idea of presenting ourselves to God as works of art, reenvisioning art as the very core of our being: God calls us to improvise as living works of art. Benson also examines the nature of liturgy and connects art and liturgy in a ne…Read more