ABOARD THE PAPAL FLIGHT FROM SLOVAKIA (CNS) -- The debate about denying Communion to politicians who support abortion must be handled in a pastoral way, not by public condemnations that seek to "excommunicate" Catholics who are not in line with church teaching, Pope Francis said.

Even for pro-lifer Catholics labouring in the political trenches, it must seem a blessing in disguise that abortion has so far failed to get off the ground as a federal election issue.

WASHINGTON -- The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled against blocking a Texas law banning abortions at six weeks of pregnancy.

BERLIN -- German bishops are concerned that a decision guaranteeing German health insurers will pay for pregnant women's blood tests to detect Down syndrome will lead to abortion.

As the economic successes of the Industrial Age gave way to grandiose advancements of the modern technological era, society was presumed to be a great beacon of civilization. Humans see ourselves as formidable and intelligent as we learn more and more.

OTTAWA -- Campaign Life Coalition is calling on pro-life Canadians to show support for New Brunswick’s provincial government in a legal fight over funding and access to abortion services in the east coast province.

BRUSSELS -- The bishops of the European Union, while applauding a proposed EU report on expanding the access of all women to adequate health care, take strong issue with the report's characterization of abortion as a human right and its claim that "a total ban on abortion care or denial of abortion care is a form of gender-based violence."

WASHINGTON -- The Women’s Health Protection Act, introduced in the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House on June 8, “would invalidate nearly all existing state limitations on abortion,” said Jennifer Popik, director of federal legislation for National Right to Life.

LONDON, England -- A record number of abortions took place in England and Wales in 2020, according to new statistics.

OTTAWA -- While Canadians are still having conversations around abortion, the latest vote in the House of Commons shows the nation’s lawmakers don’t want to hear what is being said, pro-life organizations say.

Conservative MP Cathay Wagantall’s bill to ban sex-selective abortions in Canada was defeated in the House of Commons by a 248-82 margin June 2.

OTTAWA -- A final vote on a Conservative MP’s effort to ban sex-selective abortion is expected to be held June 2.

OTTAWA -- Saskatchewan Conservative MP Cathay Wagantall’s private member’s bill to make abortions done on the basis of a baby’s sex illegal in Canada will be up for debate and second reading in the House of Commons April 14.

MANCHESTER, England -- Politicians in Northern Ireland voted overwhelmingly in favor of a bill to prevent the late-term abortions of babies with disabilities.

WASHINGTON -- Failure to pass the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act "shows just how extreme the majority of Senate Democrats are," said Carol Tobias, president of National Right to Life.