Lincoln’s Inn was an institution central to John Donne’s work both as a poet and as a preacher. As a student, Donne’s poetry was inspired by and circulated among a friendship group centred on the inns of court. Twenty years later, his sermons preached at Lincoln’s Inn are distinctive in the way they reflect and validate the society’s institutional identity. However, as well as celebrating community and belonging Rhatigan argues that Donne was also acutely aware of the moral dangers attendant on human relationships. She suggests that his sermons point to the fact that community is not just often fractured and contested, but also intrinsically morally ambiguous. She concludes that despite, or perhaps even because of, his personal connection with the society, Donne’s sermons are permeated with an awareness that living in community can be spiritually corrupting as well as potentially edifying.