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Good morning, As the world looks towards the promising signs of effective Covid-19 vaccines and we count down the days till life begins to return to normal, the attention of global leaders has turned to the moral question of who should get access to these vaccines. Rich countries such as the UK have already bought up a significant number of doses of the vaccine from pharmaceutical firms. We naturally want to be first in line. Charity begins at home, so the saying goes. And perhaps there’s something instinctive about wanting the best for those closest to us. But what of those in the world’s poorest countries who simply can’t afford to jostle their way to the front of the queue? What makes us more worthy to get our hands on the vaccine than them? And who do we mean by ‘us’ anyway? And what is our moral responsibility as a rich nation to those in poorer ones? The pandemic has shown me that our individual flourishing is inextricably bound up with others’. This is true not just at household, community and national level, but at a global level, too. As every nation in the world grapples with the pandemic, it’s more important than ever that we see ourselves not as islands but as one human family, interconnected and dependent on each other for our own wellbeing. There are some among us – right here in this country - who are living in poverty, facing unimaginable challenges and injustices; and there are also those we’ll never meet, in countries far away from here who are – through no fault of their own – living in extreme poverty; who find themselves bearing the brunt of the world’s broken economic system designed to keep them poor.. These are people just like us. But the scales happen to be tipped in our favour, and we find ourselves at the front of the queue. Perhaps now is the time for us to consider the radical idea that maybe the last should be first. Rebalancing those scales isn’t just the duty of governments; each of us must ask ourselves whether we want to seek only our own self-interest, or whether we care about the flourishing of others. Throughout scripture can be found time and time again a counter-intuitive call for us to regard others more than we do ourselves. Christ’s death and hope-filled resurrection speak of sacrifice, the ultimate price paid so that the world’s brokenness might eventually be made whole. Divine strength comes not in seeking our own benefit, but instead is found in this profound beauty that comes with divine selflessness and sacrifice – kindness even when we gain nothing in return. Perhaps this kindness and generosity follow a more expansive understanding of who ‘us’ is, and the selfless act of letting others take our place at the front of the queue.