Earlier this week it came "out" in the news that Vice President Mike Pence does not dine alone with a woman unless it is his wife. In the Christian realm, this has been met with praise, admiration, and a recollection of when this idea was accepted by the Reverend Billy Graham.
I highly encourage everyone to read the article shared by The Gospel Coalition:
WHERE DID THE “BILLY GRAHAM RULE” COME FROM?
The article goes over the "Modesto Manifesto," principles the Reverend Graham and three other men came up with to guide their lives after noticing, "problems they had witnessed among other evangelists, actions that had undermined the integrity of the gospel message, revealed hypocrisy, and ruined lives."
1.Money
2. Sexual Immorality
3. Attitude Against the Local Church
4. Publicity
The article goes into modest detail about the four sub topics. It was not a new way of living for the gentlemen, but now they had "settle(d) in our hearts and minds, once and for all, the determination that integrity would be the hallmark of both our lives and our ministry."
Under Sexual Immorality, the passage from his Reverend Graham's autobiography is shared:
"We pledged among ourselves to avoid any situation that would have even the appearance of compromise or suspicion. From that day on, I did not travel, meet or eat alone with a woman other than my wife. We determined that the Apostle Paul’s mandate to the young pastor Timothy would be ours as well: “Flee . . . youthful lusts” (2 Timothy 1:22, KJV)."
And apparently our new Vice President follows this standard of living. And he has been ridiculed for it, slandered for it, accused of promoting the rape culture, and being sexist.
I commented on the post from The Gospel Coalition that I support this standard, and in fact have seen this standard acted out in the very life of my boss. Before I even started, my mother-in-love (we now work together) shared with me basically the #1 rule for the office, "Mr.C will not be in the office alone with a woman."
Not that he couldn't, but that he would not. He would not put him in a position to be accused of something. He is a man of integrity and righteousness. I enjoy working with him, he has high standards and is respectable.
The comments I heard back in reply from trolls was shocking:
- If he was a man of integrity he could be in a room with 20 naked women and nothing would be said.
- Does he consider himself unsafe company?
There was ton of support, admiration for him being above reproach,
Unfortunately those in support of VP Pence have been mocked and ridiculed, right along side the man. I got a bit feisty with one person, in regards to the 20 naked women comment:
"I am sorry, but what world do you live in? This entire issue is being blown out of proportion because a man has a moral code. People think that is scandalous. People have commented that he is the opposite of President Trump. One with immoral acts in his past. The media and people bemoaned how despicable President Trumps past actions were. And now they bemoan his Vice President for trying to be above reproach. Hypocrites!
People today are always out to find something wrong with every decision others make. You can be the most decent person in the world, but there will always be someone who will find fault with your actions. Vice President Pence, Reverend Billy Graham, and men like my boss, by having this rule in place should be assured that issues won't arise in regards to their faithfulness to their wives. But we can all see that apparently every action is circumspect."
After that I stopped replying/commenting.
What I am reminded of is this. The world is broken, and anyone who follows the moral code of Jesus will be slandered and mocked. And also, that ultimately that the boundaries couples put up to protect their lives and marriages is up to them. What works for one marriage might not work in another, but that doesn't mean it is wrong.
To me it is refreshing to see a man live out his moral convictions in public office. It is a concept that has been long gone from our nations government for some time.
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