Maintaining Honor

I just feel bad today. I feel really bad for a 19 year old kid I didn't even know existed until this past Tuesday. And because I feel bad, it has me questioning all I hold dear. Ok, not even remotely close, but it does make yet another area of my life just a little more gray.

I am referring to Brandon Davies. Brandon is a sophomore at BYU who many consider to have been their second best player on their basketball team. I use the words have been because he was removed from the team this past Tuesday for violations of the BYU Honor Code. Now immediately, people will think they know where this is going. BYU is having what is arguably their best basketball season ever. Not ever as in the last five years. Ever as in best basketball season since Brigham Young himself said, "This is the right place." So maybe I am wrong, but I am sure there are people who will assume this post is going to be all about how he shouldn't have been kicked off the team in order to save their season. Well, it isn't. I attended ASU and since they consistently suck at basketball, I always root for UofA. So what BYU does on the court really affects me not at all.

My concern is actually for a young man. BYU has done the right thing in not giving any information out about the nature of his indiscretion. However the Salt Lake Tribune has done some digging and now the headlines all over the country today are that Brandon Davies was kicked off the BYU basketball team because he had sex. Our natural inclinations are to come to the defense of our "Church's school" and their honor code. I have heard and seen on message boards the comments that well this stinks but I am proud of my university for standing for their principals or pointing out that every student who goes to BYU is aware of the honor code when they enroll and sign it when they show up to go to class. But the more I ponder this issue, the more I think about the effects and wish there was a different way this could have gone down.

First of all, over and over again in our General Conferences, Stake Conferences, Youth Firesides and weekly church meetings, we plead not just with our youth, but especially with our youth, to come to understand the principle of repentance. To believe that no matter what they may have done, there is a way out and way to move on and leave the past behind you. To further encourage the step of confession in the repentance process, we assure everyone that what is shared with a bishop is strictly confidential. I don't know how BYU found out about Brandon Davies' issue, but I hope it wasn't from a Bishop. But regardless, that message got a little undercut today whether intended or not.

The other argument, that I can certainly understand and somewhat agree with, is that there are standards in place and everyone knows what they are signing up for when they come to BYU. However, Brandon Davies was 17 when he committed to BYU. I would argue that he knew what he was getting into just like I knew what I was committing to when I got baptized at 8, received the Aaronic Priesthood at 12 and the Melchizedek Priesthood when I was 18. It is impossible to know what life is going to throw at you when you are 17. Furthermore, I am pretty confident in stating that I am sure Brandon Davies is not the only person at BYU to break the Honor Code in this way. However, I am assuming none of them are required to get up in front of their Algebra class and admit to having premarital sex and ask for forgiveness from their fellow students the way Brandon had to in front of his basketball team. (If I am incorrect in my assumption, I would hope some of my BYU alumni friends will let me know.)

Now I want to state again that I support BYU's honor code. I believe in everything that it stands for and states. My sadness is directed at the avenue taken to enforce the honor code. Brandon is still a student at BYU today. Everyone at the university had to know how big this would be for their recently #3 ranked basketball team. If the transgression was enough to warrant removal from the team, shouldn't it also warrant immediate removal from the school? If not, why go public until everything has been resolved? To take it a step further, if you are in violation of the honor code and are ineligible to play Division I athletics at a Church school, wouldn't it also stand to reason that anyone in violation of the honor code should also not be allowed to participate in intramural athletics held at any of our institutes? Before you scoff at this and say it isn't relevant, think through this with me. Why would anyone scoff at that idea? Because activities at the institute are a great tool for reactivation. If you need reactivation, you are in violation of the honor code. But that doesn't change the fact that God still wants you. So we invite less actives to play basketball, go to dances, take classes and attend devotionals. We want them to return. We will sometimes casually refer to it as leaving the 99 and going after the one. Today, Brandon Davies is the one.

Now, I have to stop and actually give credit to BYU for what I believe is the message they are trying to send here. I believe they want everyone to realize that the honor code is not a paper tiger. I believe they want the world to know that at BYU (and in a larger context the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints)winning championships or performing well athletically will never be more important than the standards of the honor code. That is a very laudible position. It makes me proud to be a Mormon. But what about Brandon? Is there any congregation in the United States now that won't have someone who remembers this? We all know someone who didn't live up to the ideals of the Church at a young age, whether it be not going on a mission, teen pregnancy or (insert sin of choice in this spot). We also remember the stigma that person had to live with, especially at the college stage of life. It isn't fair, but it is reality. Now add the weight of national media attention to that person's burden and how well would they hold up? How much would they just want to run and never look back, get lost in order to never be found? What if it was you? What if it was your child?

My solution (because I am so smart and have taken minutes to think this over as opposed to the days, weeks and years of better educated and more highly spiritual men and women than myself who sit on BYU's governing board have taken) would have been to avoid any decision with regard to his status as a player until his status as a student had been decided. If his actions warranted removal from the school immediately, then this could not have been avoided. If it warranted his removal from the school but did not require immediate action, let him finish the quarter and remain on the team and give him a chance to get his life right without all of the brutal attention he is now receiving. If he is placed on probation, again, let him work through his private issues in private. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is a welcoming gospel even for those who sin. If he is willing to work on making things right, give the kid an environment where he feels welcome.

So for those who think that I was going to write this to say that he shouldn't be kicked off the basketball team, you were right. However, it is not because I want to see BYU save its national basketball championship dreams, it is because I would like to see them save Brandon Davies. Because as much as he will have my prayers and thoughts with him today, just like any of us when it comes to our sins, I bet he would prefer to have my ignorance.