Young people recognised at Million Minutes Awards 2022

July 15, 2022

Hundreds gathered at the House of Commons to celebrate young people from across the country and recognise the contributions to their communities.

Recipients of the Rutilio Grande and Companions Award at the ceremony

The awards - now in their fifth year - are organised by Million Minutes, a charity which is "dedicated to enabling young people to transform their lives and lead change in their community".

The awards celebrate those champions of Catholic social teaching who are having a real impact in their communities.

For those who don't know, Catholic social teaching is concerned with human dignity and the common good in society, and has its roots in the writings of Catholic theologians such as Thomas Aquinas and Augustine of Hippo.

This year, the Jesuits in Britain presented an award created in honour of Father Rutilio Grande, a Jesuit priest and martyr who was murdered by a fascist death squad in El Salvador in 1977, and who was beatified earlier this year by Pope Francis.

Fr Rutilio had preached with passion about the hidden injuries and growing injustices suffered by the rural poor at the hands of El Salvador's wealthy landowners, many of whom supported the fascist junta.

The Rutilio Grande and Companions Award was set up to honour clergy and religious who have driven real change in the field of social action and parish transformation, an area which is often overlooked.

This year, the award was presented by Aleem Maqbool, Religion Editor for the BBC, to Father Paul Wilkinson and Sister Margaret Walsh. Another nominee, Sr Silvana Dallanegra, was Highly Commended.

The Jesuits in Britain are also funding two new bursaries, named after Father Rutilio Grande, for students from all backgrounds studying at Liverpool Hope and Durham Universities. You can find out more about that here.

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