Substack: johninazu.substack.com
John Inazu is the Sally D. Danforth Distinguished Professor of Law and Religion at Washington University in St. Louis.
He is the author of Learning to Disagree: The Surprising Path to Navigating Differences with Empathy and Respect (Zondervan, 2024), Liberty's Refuge: The Forgotten Freedom of Assembly (Yale University Press, 2012) and Confident Pluralism: Surviving and Thriving Through Deep Difference (University of Chicago Press, 2016). He is co-editor (with Tim Keller) of Uncommon Ground: Living Faithfully in a World of Difference (Thomas Nelson, 2020).
Inazu is the founder of The Carver Project and the Legal Vocation Fellowship, a Senior Fellow with the Trinity Forum, and a Senior Fellow with Interfaith America, where he co-directs (with Eboo Patel) the Newbigin Fellows and Evangelicals in a Diverse Democracy.
Inazu teaches both law students and undergraduates. You can learn more about his courses below.
Teaching
CRIMINAL LAW
The introductory first year course covers the basics of criminal law including theories of punishment and sentencing, elements of criminal offenses, defenses, and tools of statutory interpretation.
RELIGION AND THE CONSTITUTION
An introductory course to the theory, history, and doctrine of the religion clauses of the Constitution. The law school course includes greater detail in the doctrine, particularly at the intersection of other First Amendment concerns. The undergraduate course, co-taught with Mark Valeri, includes more attention to history and social context.
ADVANCED SEMINARS
Recent law student and undergraduate seminars include:
Constitutional Interpretation
Religion, Politics, and the University (with Eboo Patel)
BEYOND BOUNDARIES
The Beyond Boundaries program at Washington University is an interdisciplinary initiative that encourages co-teaching by faculty across school and departmental lines. Inazu teaches with Penina Laker from the Sam Fox School of Design a course called Law, Race, and Design: Examining the St. Louis Story.
