You will find through the links below answers to some of the questions I am asked most frequently. These are my own thoughts and practices, and everything you read here is offered in my personal capacity. Plenty of smart people will have different, conflicting, and sometimes better approaches than the ones you find here.
If you have perused the relevant topics and your question has not been answered, you can email me.
Topics:
For Prospective Students
SHOULD I ATTEND WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY?
I don’t know. We are an excellent school—I have great colleagues and great students, and most of our graduates have great opportunities. But don't come if you will be saddled with debt.
SHOULD I GO TO LAW SCHOOL?
Maybe. Law school is a transformative education for many people. It changed the way I think about words, language, people, culture, government, and society. It made me a better reader and, eventually, a better writer. It gave me a set of skills that I use in many different areas of life. But it’s not for everyone.
WHAT SHOULD I DO TO PREPARE FOR LAW SCHOOL?
Take undergraduate classes you enjoy that make you work on your writing. Also, work on your writing. Study for the LSAT and take a preparatory course if possible. Learn to be a really good writer, and fight for feedback about how to get even better. Don’t try to figure out what law school is going to be like—it’s one of those things in life that you won’t really understand until you’re doing it. Also, work on your writing.
IS LAW SCHOOL HARD?
Yes, for many students. It was hard for me. I find students with work experience after college or other advanced degrees often have less difficulty, but it is a lot of work for almost every student.
Law school can also be emotionally difficult. You are learning a new way to think about the world, and you are encountering challenging and often highly charged material. You’ll want to prepare intellectually, but also physically, spiritually, and emotionally. And if you get to law school and it feels like too much, talk to someone. Dropping out of law school is not even close to the worst thing in the world.
For Current Students
WHAT COURSES DO YOU TEACH?
I teach primarily in the law school and roughly one course each year to undergraduates through the John C. Danforth Center on Religion and Politics.
In the law school, I usually teach Religion and the Constitution.
I co-teach (with Mark Valeri) a first-year undergraduate course called Religious Freedom in America.
I also teach a number of other courses (usually seminars) on various topics related to the First Amendment. In recent years, these courses have included:
Pluralism and Difference
Religion, Politics, and the University
The First Amendment in Schools
Constitutional Interpretation
Law, Religion, and Politics
Law and Theology
In Spring 2020 and Spring 2022, I co-taught with Penina Laker (Sam Fox School of Design and Visual Arts) a new course for first-year students called Law, Race, and Design: Examining the St. Louis Story. This course is a special enrollment course that is part of Washington University’s Beyond Boundaries program.
WHAT ARE YOUR OFFICE HOURS?
If you are a student enrolled in a class I am teaching, you can sign up for office hours with me through our course page. Otherwise, please email Rachel Mance to make appointment.
WILL YOU WRITE A RECOMMENDATION LETTER FOR ME?
I try to accommodate recommendation requests, but please realize that my value to you is usually limited if all you’ve done is taken a big lecture class with me. There are two exceptions. If you do extremely well in my class, I can usually brag about you even if I don’t really know you (but even here, think about the limits of my effectiveness). If you do extremely poorly in my class and there is a compelling reason for your poor performance, I can sometimes address that issue.
I am better able to write letters for students who have taken seminars with me or who have otherwise been engaged in substantive writing projects with me.
If you ask me to write a recommendation letter, please include: (1) your resume; and (2) a brief statement explaining why you are interested in whatever you are asking me to recommend you for, why you think you are a good candidate for this opportunity, and why you think I am a good person to write your letter.
WILL YOU SERVE AS A REFERENCE FOR ME FOR MY BAR APPLICATION?
Yes, if you are a current or former law student of mine and you give me enough advance notice. Please be sure to include any instructions and deadlines in your request.
SHOULD I TRY TO GET A JUDICIAL CLERKSHIP AFTER GRADUATING FROM LAW SCHOOL?
Generally, yes, if your personal and financial circumstances allow for it. A clerkship can be a wonderful experience and a great credential for many legal jobs. On the other hand, lots of amazing and happy lawyers do not apply for clerkships or do not get the clerkship they had hoped for.
DO MY GRADES DETERMINE MY WORTH AND VALUE AS A PERSON?
No.
DOES GETTING THE RIGHT JOB DETERMINE MY WORTH AND VALUE AS A PERSON?
No.
EASY FOR YOU TO SAY, YOU WERE SUCCESSFUL IN LAW SCHOOL AND LEGAL PRACTICE?
Nope. Pretty mediocre in law school, pretty good in practice, some career missteps, unemployed and uninsured right before our second child came along.
SO HOW DID YOU END UP TEACHING AT WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY?
I don’t know. The grace of God, a lucky break with my first book, and generous colleagues who made me a better candidate.
NOW THAT I KNOW ABOUT YOUR UPS AND DOWNS, WHY SHOULD I TAKE YOU SERIOUSLY?
Because I am your professor.
Expertise
WHAT DO YOU KNOW REALLY WELL?
Pluralism (I wrote a book on it)
The right of assembly (I wrote the book on it)
Associational rights
Free speech (including public forum issues)
Law and religion (including free exercise and establishment issues)
Law and theology
Pluralism and higher education
WHAT DO YOU KNOW A LITTLE BIT ABOUT?
Criminal law. I occasionally teach criminal law but I am not a criminal law scholar.
Political theory. It may come as a surprise that I don’t know a lot about this area because it was the focus of my PhD work. But my current scholarly work covers only a narrow slice of political theory. I have not kept up with the broader political theory literature since I graduated.
Constitutional law. Because I work on the First Amendment, I am sometimes identified as an expert in constitutional law. Lots of smart law professors and theorists have spent far more time than I have studying all the other amendments and the original stuff. The same is true for scholars who specialize in theories of constitutional interpretation. To be honest, I don’t really even know the whole First Amendment that well—I’m thin on the press and petition clauses.
American Protestantism (including evangelicalism). I’ve spent enough time personally and professionally on this topic to have some knowledge and expertise.
The internment of Japanese Americans during World War II. I have written here about my family’s experience.
WHAT DO YOU KNOW ALMOST NOTHING ABOUT THAT PEOPLE THINK YOU KNOW?
Political science (other than political theory). Those familiar with the disciplinary fracture within political science will find this unsurprising.
Most of the law (beyond a superficial level), including immigration law, corporate law, tax, property, securities, labor law, international law, trusts and estates, civil procedure, criminal procedure, evidence, torts, and most of what my law school colleagues teach and write about. I occasionally write something that allows me to explore one of these areas in greater depth, but it is usually in connection with something related to my core expertise.
Conservative politics. Sometimes people in higher education who find out that I am a Christian assume I know things about conservative politics. I know very little about that world, and I don’t keep up with the literature or commentary. I have worked on religious liberty issues with the Becket Fund, I have taught a summer program to Christian students through the American Enterprise Institute, and I have occasionally collaborated with the Federalist Society (though I am not a member). I have also collaborated with Interfaith America, the Newseum, the National Constitution Center, After Charlottesville, the United States Commission on Civil Rights, and many other groups and organizations. If you are frustrated or concerned about me after reading this paragraph, please read this book.
Civil engineering. My undergraduate degree is in civil engineering, but you do not want me designing your bridge.
Public Speaking
Most of my approach to public speaking is adapted from the advice and practices of my friend, Andy Crouch.
DO YOU ACCEPT SPEAKING INVITATIONS?
Yes. I generally schedule in-person speaking engagements 12-14 months out.
Unfortunately, I am rarely able to accept virtual speaking invitations.
DO YOU HAVE A SPEAKING FEE?
Yes. I have some exceptions. I do a few talks for less than my speaking fee when they are in St. Louis or when they relate to board service or academic conferences. Unfortunately, I am only able to accept a small number of the invitations I receive for these kinds of talks. Outside of these categories, I charge a daily rate for public lectures, private meetings, and board consultations.
WHO SHOULD I CONTACT IF I AM INTERESTED IN FINDING OUT MORE ABOUT YOUR SPEAKING AVAILABILITY?
Please email Carol.
Christianity
ARE YOU A CHRISTIAN?
Yes.
WHAT KIND OF CHRISTIAN ARE YOU?
I am on the board of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, I am an occasional contributor to Christianity Today, and I co-edited a book with the late Presbyterian pastor and author Tim Keller. Depending on the circles I find myself in, sometimes I get called too theologically conservative and sometimes I get called too theologically liberal. I think both of those characterizations are misplaced, but sometimes they are also entertaining.
IF I AM A CHRISTIAN, WILL I BE WELCOMED AT WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY?
In my experience, yes. Washington University, like most universities, has its share of challenges. You will likely find some of them antithetical to your faith commitments. But you’ll also find a lot to like here, and a lot of opportunities to live out your faith. One way I am trying to do so is through The Carver Project, which empowers Christian faculty and students to serve and connect university, church, and society. You can also read my description of The Carver Project in this article in Plough.
DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING AT WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY FOR CHRISTIAN LAW STUDENTS?
Yes. Through The Carver Project, I host a reading group for law students. We typically have around 15-20 students on a given night. Any Washington University law student is welcome to attend, even if you’re not a Christian, but come expecting to focus on Christian topics. If you are a Washington University law student interested in the reading group, you can email me.
There is also a student run organization, Christian Legal Fellowship, open to law students at Washington University.
AREN’T YOU WORRIED ABOUT BEING SO PUBLIC ABOUT YOUR FAITH AT A “SECULAR” UNIVERSITY?
No.
WOULD YOU BE UNWORRIED AT EVERY UNIVERSITY, IN EVERY DISCIPLINE?
No.
Book Recommendations
I may change these from time-to-time.
WHAT BOOKS DO YOU RECOMMEND FOR PROSPECTIVE LAW STUDENTS?
H. Jefferson Powell, The Foundations of American Law: A Companion to the 1L Year
Frederick Schauer, Thinking Like a Lawyer
Eugene Volokh, Academic Legal Writing
WHAT BOOKS DO YOU RECOMMEND FOR FACULTY?
Ken Bain, What the Best College Teachers Do
Nancy Duarte, Resonate
Cal Newport, Deep Work and A World Without Email
Andy Delbanco, College
WHAT BOOKS DO YOU RECOMMEND FOR ASPIRING BOOK AUTHORS?
Courtney Maum, Before and After the Book Deal: A Writer's Guide to Finishing, Publishing, Promoting, and Surviving Your First Book
Susan Rabiner and Alfred Fortunato, Thinking Like Your Editor: How to Write Great Serious Nonfiction and Get It Published
William Germano, From Dissertation to Book
WHAT BOOKS HAVE YOU FOUND MOST HELPFUL TO UNDERSTANDING POLITICS IN OUR CULTURAL MOMENT?
Nicolas Carr, Superbloom: How Technologies of Connection Tear Us Apart
Jonathan Haidt, The Righteous Mind
Yuval Levin, A Time to Build
Steven D. Smith, The Disintegrating Conscience and the Decline of Modernity
Bryan Stevenson, Just Mercy
WHAT BOOKS HAVE YOU FOUND MOST HELPFUL TO UNDERSTANDING CHRISTIAN FAITH IN OUR CURRENT MOMENT?
Lesslie Newbigin, Proper Confidence
Tim Keller, Generous Justice
Jemar Tisby, The Color of Compromise
C.S. Lewis, The Weight of Glory
Bethany Hoang and Kristen Deede Johnson, The Justice Calling
Andy Crouch, Tech-Wise Family and Strong and Weak
Joseph Bottum, An Anxious Age
Esau McCaulley, Reading While Black
WHAT BOOKS HAVE BEEN MOST CENTRAL TO YOUR OWN INTELLECTUAL WORK AND DEVELOPMENT?
Alasdair MacIntyre, After Virtue
Sheldon Wolin, Politics and Vision
Jeffrey Stout, Democracy and Tradition
H. Jefferson Powell, The Moral Tradition of American Constitutionalism
Stanley Hauerwas, The Hauerwas Reader
WHAT BOOKS HAVE YOU FOUND SURPRISING, ENGAGING, OR ENCOURAGING IN THE LAST FEW YEARS?
Arthur Brooks, From Strength to Strength: Finding Success, Happiness, and Deep Purpose in the Second Half of Life
Lydia Dugdale, The Lost Art of Dying: Reviving Forgotten Wisdom
Justin Whitmel Early, Made for People: Why We Drift into Loneliness and How to Fight for a Life of Friendship
Alec Hill, Living in Bonus Time: Surviving Cancer, Finding New Purpose
Luke Sheahan, Why Associations Matter: The Case for First Amendment Pluralism
WHAT BOOKS HAVE YOU ENDORSED?
Following Professor Will Baude’s example, I thought it would be useful to collect and highlight the books that I have formally endorsed, since by endorsing them I found them important and hope that others interested in their subjects will read them. Here are the books (as best I can remember) that I’ve endorsed and what I’ve said about them, listed alphabetically by author’s last name:
Ashutosh Bhagwat, Our Democratic First Amendment (Cambridge University Press, 2020)
“Bhagwat’s eminently readable prose drives home the importance of speech, press, assembly, and petition to our current and future democratic experiment. Readers will benefit from this book’s careful consideration of these rights individually and collectively, and how our use of them protects and performs sovereignty, citizenship, and democracy.”
Michael F. Bird, Religious Freedom in a Secular Age: A Christian Case for Liberty, Equality, and Secular Government (Zondervan, 2022)
“Michael Bird is an astute and measured voice in today’s discourse on religion and politics. This book’s global perspective will challenge readers of all backgrounds and beliefs toward better arguments and better understanding.”
Elaine Howard Ecklund and Denise Daniels, Working for Better: A New Approach to Faith at Work (IVP Academic, 2025)
“Elaine Howard Ecklund and Denise Daniels offer a timely and important intervention in the conversation about faith and work, showing how Christians can engage in the workplaces of our pluralistic society not only with faithfulness and authenticity but also with charity and hospitality.”
Peter Greer and Chris Horst, Rooting for Rivals: How Collaboration and Generosity Increase the Impact of Leaders, Charities, and Churches (Bethany House Publishers, 2018)
“Rooting for Rivals is full of practical and compelling guidance for effective partnership in and out of the church--a reminder that the scriptural counsel to look not only to our own interests but also to the interests of others applies even when those interests are closely aligned.”
Cathleen Kaveny, Ethics at the Edges of Law: Christian Moralists and American Legal Thought (Oxford University Press, 2017)
“Ethics at the Edges of Law is one of the most important recent books at the intersection of law and theology. Kaveny’s thoughtful and at times unconventional engagement with some of the major twentieth-century figures in these two disciplines offers glimmers of both tragedy and hope-and a reminder that our lived experiences unfold in the shadow of both.”
Ronald J. Krotoszynski, Jr., The Disappearing First Amendment (Cambridge University Press, 2019)
“This important book from one of the country's leading First Amendment scholars highlights pitfalls in modern First Amendment doctrine and suggests how courts can strengthen protections for our expressive and democratic interests.”
Richard J. Mouw, How to Be a Patriotic Christian: Love of Country as Love of Neighbor (InterVarsity Press, 2022)
“Rich Mouw’s reflection on Christian faith, patriotism, and citizenship is essential reading for our times from one of the wisest and kindest voices around.”
Shirley Mullen, Claiming the Courageous Middle: Daring to Live and Work Together for a More Hopeful Future (Baker Academic, 2024)
“Mullen brings a lifetime of wisdom and experience to this meditation on the courageous middle. An important book full of resources, ideas, and practical steps for Christians seeking to faithfully navigate the deep differences in our society.”
Alan Noble, You are Not Your Own: Belonging to God in an Inhuman World (InterVarsity Press, 2021)
“In this timely meditation, Alan Noble reminds us that brokenness, loneliness, and purposelessness will not be conquered by living our best life, finding our true self, or even belonging to the right family, club, or church. To the contrary, our greatest fears and anxieties are not problems to be solved but mysteries to be embraced through the knowledge of self that comes only from knowing that the self belongs to Christ.”
Henri J.M. Nouwen, Following Jesus: Finding Our Way Home in an Age of Anxiety (Convergent Books, 2019)
“Few writers have influenced me more than Henri Nouwen. These newly published lectures offer fresh and timely insights amid the familiar cadences of Nouwen’s prose, written from a place of deep anxiety but even deeper hope.”
Todd C. Ream, Jerry A. Pattengale, and Christopher J. Dever, editors, Public Intellectuals and the Common Good: Christian Thinking for Human Flourishing (InterVarsity Press, 2020)
“The phrases ‘public intellectuals’ and ‘common good’ are often misunderstood and misappropriated. But confusion over their meanings does not diminish their importance—inside and outside of Christian discourse. This impressive volume assembles leading experts and practitioners whose work and lives shed light on what it means for Christians to engage in public discourse, and the social ends toward which that engagement points.”
Steven D. Smith, Pagans and Christians in the City: Culture Wars from the Tiber to the Potomac (Eerdmans, 2018)
“Written with Smith’s characteristic clarity and bite, Pagans and Christians in the City canvasses a broad landscape of history, law, political theory, and religion to explore some of the deepest past and present questions of humanity—and warns how our answers to those questions will shape our future.”
Asma Uddin, The Politics of Vulnerability: How to Heal Muslim-Christian Relations in a Post-Christian America (Pegasus Books, 2021)
“An exemplar of charitable civic engagement. Without oversimplification or caricature, Uddin dives headfirst into the complex world of Muslim-Christian relations. With clear and accessible prose, her nuanced analysis both explains and models how Muslims and conservative Christians can find common ground across their differences.”
Christopher J.H. Wright, Here Are Your Gods: Faithful Discipleship in Idolatrous Times (InterVarsity Press, 2020)
“Wright’s careful dive into Scripture on the meaning of idolatry packs a punch for our times—an important reminder that idols, including political idols, are false gods that we create in our image, capable of great harm and destruction but ultimately ciphers within the true created order.”
Timothy Zick, Managed Dissent: The Law of Public Protest (Cambridge University Press, 2023)
“This book is a tour de force on the constitutional dimensions of protest and dissent. Tim Zick weaves together important but often disconnected threads of the law to show the significant impediments to the law of public protest and what can be done to remove them.”
I also wrote the Foreword to Robert Cochran’s excellent book, The Servant Lawyer: Facing the Challenges of Christian Faith in Everyday Law Practice (InterVarsity Press, 2024).
WHAT THREE BOOKS WOULD YOU RECOMMEND TO PEOPLE WHO WANT TO SPEND MONEY TO BUY THEM?
Tough call, but I’m going to go with Learning to Disagree, and Confident Pluralism, and Liberty’s Refuge.
If you don’t have the money or you live in an oppressive regime but somehow have uncensored internet access, you can download Liberty’s Refuge for free under a Creative Commons license. In all seriousness, one of the most gratifying aspects of writing this book and making its content freely available has been hearing from people who live in places that don't yet have the freedom of assembly but who are working hard to change that reality.
Email and Social Media Practices
WHAT ARE YOUR EMAIL PRACTICES?
I am not always consistent, but here are my goals:
Not checking email first thing in the morning
Not checking email on Sundays (at least not until the evening)
Taking one sustained break from email each summer (for at least a week)
I am also working actively to take longer to respond to your messages.
DO YOU TALK WITH JOURNALISTS?
Yes, if it’s in my area of expertise. WashU has helpfully compiled some of my past media engagement here.
ARE YOU ON SOCIAL MEDIA?
You can follow me on Twitter or Threads (@JohnInazu), though I am not very active on either.
I joined Facebook in 2022 to share my Substack with the Facebook crowd but I don’t post much there. Also, most of the old friends I tried to reconnect with on Facebook thought my friend request was some phishing scam, because what Gen Xer joins Facebook in 2022?
I am also on Instagram (@john.inazu) but honestly I don’t know how to use it and if you ever see a compelling post or story on my IG, odds are one of my kids made it.
Other Questions
WILL YOU REVIEW AN ACADEMIC [BOOK/PROPOSAL/ARTICLE] FOR OUR [PRESS/LAW REVIEW/MAGAZINE]?
Sometimes, if the topic relates to my core expertise.
WOULD YOU BE WILLING TO BLURB/ENDORSE/PUBLICIZE MY BOOK?
If your book relates to my core expertise, I would love to consider the possibility. If this is your first book (and it falls within my core expertise), please let me know in your request. If your book is not within my expertise, I will likely need to decline this request.
I AM A MEMBER OF, OR THE ATTORNEY REPRESENTING, A [CULT/CHURCH/NONPROFIT/PROTEST MOVEMENT] AND WAS HOPING TO PICK YOUR BRAIN ABOUT OUR RIGHTS TO [ASSEMBLE/PROTEST/SPEAK/MARCH/ASSOCIATE]. CAN WE TALK?
Probably not. But seriously, read my stuff. It can give you legal arguments that you might find helpful.
I HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR YOU TO INHERIT $3,000,000 USD FROM A DISTANT RELATIVE OF YOURS WHO URGENTLY NEEDS TO HEAR FROM YOU. ALL WE NEED IS YOUR SOCIAL SECURITY AND BANK ACCOUNT NUMBERS.
“You know what Toby, when the son of the deposed king of Nigeria emails you directly, asking for help, you help! His father ran the freaking country! Okay?”