QUEBEC CITY - While university students, anti-capitalists and environmentalists have routinely mustered tens of thousands into the streets of Montreal and Quebec City over the last two months, a small coalition of conservative Christians managed 650 for the second annual Christian March from the Plains of Abraham to Quebec’s National Assembly.

The number of marchers for the June 2 event was down from about 1,000 the year before.

OTTAWA - The Supreme Court of Canada has overwhelming dismissed an appeal by pro-life crusader Linda Gibbons.

In an 8-1 vote, Canada's highest court upheld lower court rulings that permitted Gibbons to be charged criminally for disobeying temporary injunctions that were imposed in civil courts several years ago.

TORONTO - Former Rogers Sportsnet host Damian Goddard is accustomed to talking into a camera. But with the lights temporarily shut off on his TV career he is looking forward to telling his story to a live audience.

Goddard will be a featured speaker at the Toronto Pro-Life Forum 2012 to be held June 15-16 at Hotel Novotel in Toronto.

Goddard was fired by Sportsnet, part of Rogers Media, in May 2011 after he tweeted support for hockey agent Todd Reynolds’s position against gay marriage. Rogers says the firing was unrelated to Goddard’s tweet. A year later, still seeking fulltime employment in the broadcast industry, Goddard stands behind his words.

Canada’s Salt+Light Television has been selected as an official broadcaster of the 50th Eucharistic Congress and will provide live daily coverage from Dublin.

Hosted by Fr. Thomas Rosica, coverage will begin at 8 a.m. EDT on June 10 with the opening ceremonies and Mass celebrated by Canadian Cardinal Marc Oullet, Prefect of the Congregation of Bishops.

The eight days of coverage, with programming in English, French and Cantonese, will focus on catechesis, personal testimonies and liturgies from a long list of Church leaders, including Vancouver Archbishop Michael Miller on June 13.

TORONTO - Bill-13 is now the law in Ontario, which means Catholic schools must allow gay-straight alliance clubs if requested by students.

The controversial bill, supported by the Liberals and NDP, easily passed by a vote of 65 to 36 in the Ontario legislature on Tuesday.

Immediately following its passage, Toronto Cardinal Thomas Collins issued a brief statement in which he said Catholic schools should respect the law.

OTTAWA - The Ontario government’s controversial Bill-13 could face a court challenge on six different points, a constitutional lawyer told an Ontario government social policy committee hearing. During a May 22 submission, Albertos Polizogopoulos, an Ottawa lawyer who practices primarily in the areas of constitutional and civil litigation, gave the committee an inch-thick document that highlighted previous Supreme Court decisions related to religious freedom.

“Nobody has a right to insist Catholic schools become non-religious or non-Catholic,” he said.

Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty has rejected Cardinal Thomas Collins call for flexibility and inclusivity, insisting that gay-straight alliances will be enforced by law and available for every student in the province who wants one.

Speaking on May 29, the morning after Collins issued his objections to controversial Bill-13, McGuinty said Collins has his “responsibilities” but “I have a different set of responsibilities.”

The Liberal government of Dalton McGuinty has pulled a dramatic about-face by breaking a pledge not to force Catholic schools to use the term gay-straight alliance for anti-bullying clubs.

Instead, Education Minister Laurel Broten has announced an amendment to Bill 13 to make it mandatory that Catholic students be allowed to name their clubs gay-straight alliances if that is their wish.

"Under our amendments (to Bill 13), no school board or principal can refuse to allow students to use the name "gay-straight alliance" to describe their clubs," Broten said in a letter released to Liberal supporters on May 25.

The Youth Speak News team of writers gathered at the Newman Centre at the University of Toronto May 18-20 for the annual Youth Speak News retreat. The weekend combined faith, journalism workshops and fun. As well as the activities showcased below, the weekend also included a talk by Office of Catholic Youth director Fr. Frank Portelli and a layout workshop.

To view a full gallery of images from the weekend click here, and to read YSN writer Kevin Hurren's reflection on the weekend click here.

TORONTO - Msgr. Wayne Kirkpatrick, a priest of the Ontario diocese of St. Catharines, has been appointed auxiliary bishop of the archdiocese of Toronto.

Pope Benedict XVI made the announcement May 18. Bishop-designate Kirkpatrick will be ordained to the episcopate in St. Catharines at a date to be determined before commencing his duties with the archdiocese.