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Good Morning. Jules White, founder of the WorthLess? campaign representing head teachers across the country, suggested on this programme earlier this week that great teachers need “enthusiasm, desire and resilience.” Whilst parents scurry around gathering up books, lunch boxes and last minute uniform items this weekend as many children begin a new academic year- recruitment difficulties affecting many schools, as pupil numbers continue to rise, is a genuine concern. And of course it’s not just about recruiting any teacher. The greater challenge is actually employing the right kind of teachers who exhibit those much needed qualities I just mentioned. Every July, our parish hosts a breakfast for newly qualified teachers starting out at the school just across the road. The aim is to introduce them to the local community, to meet local people and therefore better understand the context in which they will be working where they will be teaching. And, each time, I come away from the meeting exhilarated by the excitement and enthusiasm displayed by each fresh group of new teachers. Suddenly the future seems much brighter? And it’s not only through the specific knowledge of their chosen specialist subjects that they will impact on the lives of their pupils: it’s how they as people will imbue other kinds of wisdom by the example of their lives. Last month I led a Study Day looking at where the biblical notion of wisdom comes from. Acknowledging that much Old Testament teaching about wisdom has its roots in ancient near eastern civilisations was thought provoking. But the much-later spiritual dimension to wisdom around the time of Solomon resulted in teaching focussing as much on the a spiritual dimension of the human person as well as physical and mental wellbeing. The concern was for the whole person. And now, just like then, as the Book of Proverbs underlines, when a good teacher effectively imparts wisdom the result is joy and happiness. The opposite results when a teacher fails in their task for, and I quote, they “spout [only] foolishness.” Amidst so much economic and political uncertainty as the vast majority of schools reopen this week the start of this new school year presents challenges and opportunities not only to schools but to all of us as we face a shortage of teachers. Enthusiasm, desire and resilience are desirable qualities for all teachers to aspire to. After all, the ultimate goal is to impart both knowledge and wisdom to our children and grandchildren; the harvest of which is joy and happiness.