Muslim leaders sign climate change declaration

MUSLIM leaders from more than 20 countries have signed a ground-breaking declaration on climate change in preparation for the climate summit in Paris in December. Participants at the International Islamic Climate Change Symposium in Istanbul agreed to call on governments to switch from fossil fuels to renewables, and endorsed a moral case to limit global warming based on Islamic teaching. Christian Aid’s senior climate-change adviser, Mohamed Adow, welcomed the declaration and said that people of faith needed to unite to bring their voices into the global climate talks.

Dean Hall to stand down in Washington

THE Dean of Washington National Cathedral in the United States, the Very Revd Gary Hall, has announced that he will stand down at the end of the year, two years before his contract expires. Dean Hall has been in the post since 2012, but said in a letter to the cathedral community on Tuesday that the cathedral needed someone to make a commitment to leading it for at least ten years to push through necessary financial changes.

Kenyan bishops clamp down on politicisation of funerals

SIX Anglican bishops in Kenya have demanded that politicians stop using funerals as platforms for political speeches. The six, led by the Bishop of Maseno North, the Rt Revd Simeon Oktech, have reprimanded politicians who had incited mourners at funerals against their opponents. Two weeks ago, the governor of the county of Kakamega and a local councillor clashed over allegations of corruption during a funeral.