In his final devotional as president of Brigham Young University, Rex E. Lee did not say good-bye, nor did he wish to reminisce of glory days long since past.
Instead, the cheerful and excited Lee welcomed about 14,000 of some 28,000 registered BYU students at the Marriott Center Tuesday for the beginning of fall semester and spoke about the importance of maintaining ethics, integrity and standards at the LDS Church-owned school - and in continuing these morals throughout life."My own favorite definition (of ethics) comes from Potter Stewart, an associate justice of the United States Supreme Court," Lee said. "He defines ethics as `knowing the difference between what you have a right to do and what is the right thing to do.' "
Lee said the distinction in Justice Stewart's definition is crucial.
"You have a legal right to gossip, to lie (unless you do it under oath), to burn flags, read pornography, be disrespectful to your parents, criticize and attack your church leaders, apostatize from the church, pay less than a full tithing, smoke cigarettes, be insensitive to your family members' needs, sit by silently doing nothing while your neighbor drowns or wear a red sweater in Cougar stadium the afternoon of Nov. 18 when the Cougars play the University of Utah.
"But the fact that you have a right to do these things does not make any of them the right thing to do," he said, "and ethics, as defined by Justice Stewart, consists of knowing the difference between the two."
Lee said principles of ethics are universally accepted and grounded in more than common sense and respect for others.
By abiding by and complying with BYU's Honor Code, Lee said students can demonstrate integrity associated with being a member of the university.
But Lee said the Honor Code - which is a code of conduct students sign agreeing to live certain standards set by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints - is "two-tiered."
"The first tier consisting of those values that are to be taken seriously, and whose violation should be a matter for some kind of official university response, while those in the second tier, most notably our dress and grooming standards, fall into a category of admonitions that we might call `good ideas if you're into that kind of thing, but since they're not required for a temple recommend, don't sweat it.' "
But having made such commitments, such as signing the Honor Code, that should be the end of the matter, Lee said.
"A different standard does apply to those of us at BYU," he said, "which each of us has solemnly agreed to follow. . . . We are honest and ethical not only because it is the best policy, but also because it is solidly tied to the principles of restored truth. We must first secure our knowledge of these truths, and they will then become the foundation for everything else that we do."
Speaking with her husband, Janet Lee related a childhood memory she said helped her to understand the importance of accepting new challenges by walking with faith instead of fear and relying on the light of Jesus Christ to help along the way.
"When our path becomes dark and we trip along the way, the monsters of life can seem very real as we lie in the dirt, wondering what will become of us," she said. "At those times we need to remember our gift of light, and with renewed faith, put aside fears, pick ourselves up, brush ourselves off and go on."
Rex Lee, who has been president at BYU for six years, resigned from his position in June after suffering from a series of infections that left him physically debilitated. A search committee has begun the process of finding a new president, and Lee will resume teaching duties in January as a professor at BYU's law school, where he was the founding dean.