University of Utah President Michael Young was honored Wednesday by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints along with U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations H.E. John Bolton.

The event hosted by the church's New York Office of Public and International Affairs recognized the men during an "Evening of International Understanding" that brought together political, business and religious leaders, along with U.N. ambassadors and the New York-based Consulate General.

"I am accepting it on behalf of people who do not have a voice, whose causes we are championing," said Young, former chairman of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom. "The real courage is to be found in the people who are suffering and who have stayed true to their values and beliefs."

Young was appointed by the U.S. Senate to serve two three-year terms on the commission. Bolton served on the commission in 1998.