We Seek After These Things

We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men. . . . If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things (Thirteenth Article of Faith).

As a matter of personal commitment, faculty, administration, staff, and students of Brigham Young University, Brigham Young University—Hawaii, Brigham Young University—Idaho, and LDS Business College seek to demonstrate in daily living on and off campus those moral virtues encompassed in the gospel of Jesus Christ, and will

Be honest
Live a chaste and virtuous life
Obey the law and all campus policies
Use clean language
Respect others
Abstain from alcoholic beverages, tobacco, tea, coffee, and substance abuse
Participate regularly in church services
Observe the Dress and Grooming Standards
Encourage others in their commitment to comply with the Honor Code

This is the BYU honor code. Each student signs a statement saying they will live these standards. If they choose not to abide by these standards after signing this statement, there are consequences... just like any other contract.

BYU has been getting a lot of flack, and praise for that matter (by ESPN!), for the honor code. Some claim BYU is over zealous with enforcing the honor code. Yes, if you show up to the testing center or special collections without shaving your face (for men), or wearing inappropriate clothing (for men or women), they will turn you away, ask you to abide by the honor code, and tell you to return later. That's actually part of the job description for those working in these places. Signs at these locations say, "Please follow the honor code so we may serve you." You know, coming to the school, that this is a possibility... really a probability. You signed the paper, you know it's going to happen.

A friend of mine said, "I will like BYU when it changes a few things." I'm not sure exactly what he wants changed. He wasn't clear. He tried using scripture to prove his point, but all it did was call him a hypocrite. He says BYU is missing the mark with trying to enforce silly rules. He says BYU is selective on what they enforce. Then, after seeing that his opinion was not accepted, decided to drop it. Which is probably a good thing.

Here are my thoughts. BYU is run by the Church, but is NOT the Church. The Gospel is perfect, the school is not. Anything run by men, though inspired by God, will not be perfect. People make mistakes. Every person makes mistakes. Expecting people, or an organization, to not make mistakes, is expecting disappointment.

This all came up after the recent dismissal of Brandon Davies, a BYU athlete. Reports say he was dismissed because of an honor code violation. BYU never ever discloses the details of dismissal because they respect the privacy of each student. No one needs an unsolicited mob attack. Okay, so it was an honor code violation. As noted above, for minor infractions, there are usually minor consequences. Being turned away from the TC for not shaving... I consider that minor. Inconvenient, yes. Life threatening, no. You only get dismissed from a team or school for some pretty major infractions.

So... isn't that what happens in life? You get caught doing something bad, you get some negative consequences. Huh... so if that's how the law/government works, why is it so bad for BYU to do the same? How are they missing the mark? How are they over-zealous.

His other commentary was about the BYU fans. He mentioned a time when leaving a football game he had Skittles thrown at him and the fans were swearing. Well, what can the school, as a whole, do about the individual actions of its fans? Can BYU police approach every person and tell them not to swear or cheer? I think that would be over-zealous and a waste of resources.

My point is, I think life would be better and easier if we stopped pointing our fingers and tried to improve themselves. Instead of bashing, study other opinions and see the good points. Become educated. Where there are serious flaws needing to be fixed, go to a source where things can be changed. Shouting your opinions at people in a public sphere (like a website) doesn't get too far. It's good to have opinions. But it's also good to express them in a healthy way.

I am in no way claiming superiority in this area. No, no. I am aware of my own flaws and am working on them too. We do what we can. Let's all just be a little more aware.