Our Signature: A Code of Honor

Our Signature: A Code of Honor

Brigham Young University is a wonderful campus where the Spirit of God can be felt. On the surface, the easy going and pleasant atmosphere is inviting to students from all around the world. There is no doubt that BYU is a cut above the rest when it comes to campus cleanliness, not only physically, but spiritually as well.
On the average, BYU students are wholesome individuals who desire to gain a fine education and fully intend to respect the Honor Code. However, on occasion, these well-intentioned people may find themselves naïve to the specific guidelines laid down in the Honor Code, thereby breaking it unknowingly. Personally, I know I didn’t read all of the Honor Code before signing it and I know I can’t recite all of its statutes. These instances are innocent mistakes that are easily handled and corrected.
However, there is a difference between unknowingly breaking the Honor Code and being indifferent to its values. As students at BYU, we need to be mindful that if we know the rules, we need to follow them. Additionally, we can’t claim innocence if we break the Honor Code “unknowingly” but put no previous effort into finding for ourselves what the document states. The Honor Code as we know it today was adopted in 1940 and was designed to deal with cases of academic dishonesty and cheating. President Ernest L. Wilkinson, in 1957, increased the scope of the Honor Code to encompass many of the values we honor today. Morality, dress and grooming standards, drugs, and alcohol are all included within its text, as are many other standards that are in line with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
As students, we were required to sign this document upon applying to the university. Many of the “standard” components of the Honor Code are well known and easy to follow. However, there are some discrete parts of the rules which may not be as obvious to all students. For example, do we all know that the Honor Code “standards expressed above apply to students at all times whether on or off campus”? After Christmas break one of my friends said that he had obeyed all of the aspects of the Honor Code while at home. I thought this was a tad bit extreme but in the end he was correct in his actions. No matter where we are or what we are doing, the Honor Code that we have signed to attend Brigham Young University still applies.
One facet of the Honor Code, which most certainly applies to LDS and non-LDS students alike, states that students will “participate regularly in church services”. In order to carry out this aspect of the Honor Code, students must “fulfill their duty in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, attend Church meetings, and abide by the rules and standards of the Church on and off campus”.
One way fulfill our duties in the church is to magnify our callings. In my ward, I have yet to see our Sunday School President or our Activities Committee Chair at the weekly ward counsel. It is no surprise then that these are the two committees within the ward that are struggling.
Another sad reality in our ward is the dwindling attendance, especially to Relief Society and Elder’s Quorum. Our parents are no longer by our sides to continually nag us to wake up and go to church. Yeah, nine o’clock church is tough and we’re all tired, but I guess we need to ask ourselves how much we truly value taking the sacrament, renewing our covenants, and feeling the influence of the Holy Ghost.
If being too tired or too exhausted are our “reasons” (cough, cough, I mean “excuses”) for not attending out meetings, we need to step back and examine our choices. Could we possibly get in bed earlier on Friday and Saturday nights? I know I can. I know the social atmosphere at BYU is tough to ignore, but if we choose to embrace it, we have no reason to stop fulfilling our callings and going to church. After placing our signature on the Honor Code, we have a duty and obligation to fulfill all of its requirements. Refusing to do so will jeopardize our current status and future goals with Brigham Young University.
As a human being and as a student at this wonderful university, I understand if some of the rules are not totally understood by every single student. However, rebellion and disregard for our school’s policies is unacceptable and takes away from the magnificent atmosphere on campus.
A few months back, I went with some friends of mine to the Power Tumble Gym. We were with another group of kids who were also BYU students. One individual’s hairstyle clearly did not meet the dress and grooming requirements of the Honor Code. I overheard this individual squabbling that his or her parents had forced him or her to attend BYU and to demonstrate his or her apathy for the situation, decided to “screw” the Honor Code. I couldn’t believe the attitude of this individual towards a document he or she had signed, symbolizing his or her agreement to live by its standards. Attitudes such as this are inexcusable. If you sign it, you live by it. That is just how it goes.
No matter the reason behind our defiance and disobedience, nobody has the right to regard the Honor Code as being invaluable or not worth living. The Honor Code is one of, if not the, largest factor that sets BYU apart from other universities. As such, it is mandatory that all students uphold its standards and guidelines.
America was founded upon the ideals of the pursuit of happiness, equality, and freedom. Time has molded our society into a very different shape today than what it was in 1776. Some changes have been for the better and some for the worse. Back then, your signature meant something.
The signers of the Declaration of Independence did not sign the document planning on taking it back if the British ever laid hands on them. John Hancock did not sign the Declaration of Independence in such a bold fashion because it was something worth living for, but because it was something worth dying for.
The signatures of those men held their honor and integrity, something not even the royal crown of England could take away. Except when questioned under law, our personal integrity no longer seems to be attached with the name we sign, as seen by those who sign the honor code, but give no regard to obeying all of its components. We do not have the right to pick and choose which aspects of the honor code apply to us. We all signed the document. We will obey all of its statutes. That is it. No more, no less. It's final. We gave our honor to live up to its standards and nothing less will be accepted. Our signature is our word, our promise, our honor.