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Good Morning. Dr Hans Kluge, the World Health Organisation’s Regional Director for Europe, said on this programme yesterday: “We have a responsibility to take care of each other in society and to leave no-one behind.” It is clear, he said that new things are being learned about the pandemic every day and that the main danger was a second wave. But his main concern was pastoral: for children in lockdown and potential collateral mental health issues as well as for the elderly and all those in care homes. As we all wait for updated guidance from the Government tomorrow the challenge to leave no one behind remains as important as ever. Even in normal times, I’ve never met anyone faced with placing a loved one in a care home who hasn’t asked themselves the question: am I doing the right thing? Add to that now the inability to give a hug, hold a hand, be alongside loved ones has made it excruciatingly difficult. It’s also been very hard for parents and carers looking after children at home, often juggling work with all of life’s usual daily tasks whilst at the same time asking: “what effect is all of this going to have on the children’s future?” What about our responsibility here? Bishop Rowan Williams on Newsnight a few weeks ago was asked to reflect spiritually on how the virus would affect our mutual wellbeing and flourishing. Faced with insecurity on this scale we realise [he said] “how very poorly equipped we are as a society to look after those who can’t so easily look after themselves. Primarily [he added] these are the very people we care about most.” At the very heart of the Bishop’s response is the fact that the Christian faith is rooted in a call to care for all we love as if they are ourselves. It is the way Christians are meant to show their love of God. This responsibility and response is not exclusive to Christianity or to other religious people but there is a reason, for instance, why passive references are still often made in many newspaper headlines to the story of the Good Samaritan and not passing by on the other side. Such parables still form a framework for understanding our responsibility. When the Prime Minister addresses the nation tomorrow it’s worth bearing in mind Dr Kluge’s observation: this is no time for celebration but time to prepare instead for what lies ahead. In doing so, our responsibility for the security of the most vulnerable in our society should be a critical factor in how we respond as the story continues to unfold.