JoePa's final lesson: The virtue of reason

"Those who will not reason are bigots, those who cannot are fools, and those who dare not are slaves.”
-Lord Byron


Joe Paterno, beloved Hall of Fame football coach of Penn State University for 46 seasons and a living legend, died Sunday at the age of 85. He now rests in peace, but peace is the last thing those in the community that loved him best are experiencing.

This is odd to be saying about a man who had a remarkable record of success in most every way. “JoePa” was the all-time winningest coach in major college football, graduated an impressively high 78% of his players, and won multiple national championships. More importantly he was a family man (married for just short of fifty years, with five children and 17 grandchildren) and an exceptional mentor. He was also extraordinarily philanthropic, community minded, and a model example of how to run a major football program with integrity.

Which made the horrific revelations about child sexual abuse going on within his staff almost inconceivable.

In 2002, Paterno was told that one of his assistant coaches had allegedly sexually molested a young boy on the campus. At that time Paterno immediately fulfilled his legal duty by reporting what he had been told to his superiors. And then he went back to business as usual and apparently never addressed the issue again.

When the case finally went public three months ago and the university exploded in controversy, the Board of Trustees rightly concluded that Paterno could have, should have, done more. He should have been more assertive in pursuing the truth, in confronting the alleged molester, and in recognizing that protecting the innocent was the best way to protect the football program.

Although the investigation has not implicated him in any personal wrong-doing, Paterno’s disturbingly passive approach to the reported evil that went on behind his back cannot be excused, regardless of his age, his cultural background, or his lack of specific knowledge. He knew enough to have done more, and he admitted as much before his death.

Now the struggle to understand Joe Paterno’s complicated legacy is already stirring heated debate. And with any heated debate you have extremes; “pro-Joe” or “anti-Joe,” with very little in-between.

Enter the virtue of reason.

Reason is the ability to think calmly, deeply, and well; to take an issue and explore it from different angles while avoiding the mistake of drawing premature conclusions.

Reason helps us take our emotions, understand what they’re telling us, and then use them in a greater pursuit of objective truth.

Reason guides us in gathering and sorting through the relevant facts.

Reason is the process that leads to an increasingly complete understanding of the whole story.

Reason is an essential part of being human.

But reason is too often in short supply, particularly during times of great crisis, and pain, and fear, and anger because reason takes mental discipline, and moral courage, and a willingness to seek the middle way of integrity. His remarkable record of success notwithstanding, Joe Paterno failed to practice the virtue of reason when it came to confronting child sexual abuse. He serves as a case study.

But what people do with this coaching icon who in the final three months of his life became a tragic hero will be even more instructive. Some will want to airbrush and deny, while others will want to crucify and dismiss. However those who practice the virtue of reason will resist the temptation to veer toward one extreme or the other. They will choose instead to explore the complexities of the man and his legacy, and begin to draw valuable insights from this moral confusion.

And once more it will be shown that good really can come from anything.

Question for reflection: Do you think deeply and carefully?