Established in 2010, the John C. Danforth Center on Religion and Politics at Washington University serves as an open venue for fostering rigorous scholarship and informing broad academic and public communities about the intersections of religion and U.S. politics. The center is committed to supporting and enhancing outstanding scholarly research on the historical and contemporary intertwining of religion and politics; disseminating excellent scholarship to students and the broad public by means of courses, lectures, conferences, and publications; and fostering debate and discussion among people who hold widely different views about religion and politics. The center also publishes a widely acclaimed online journal Religion & Politics.

The John C. Danforth Center on Religion and Politics does not promote a single ideological perspective, religiously or politically, and a wide range of viewpoints are welcome. Aiming to serve a broad constituent base, the center reaches out to faculty and students at WashU and surrounding academic institutions; WashU alumni; scholars at other universities and colleges who work on areas relating to religion and politics in the U.S.; journalists and other writers who seek to be informed about these areas; and members of the general public who wish to enhance their own understanding of the ways religion has influenced American politics both historically and in the present.