Not A Lifetime Achievement Award

In most medieval recreation games, knighthood is treated as a kind of lifetime achievement award (LAA). You spend years doing x, y, and/or z (whether that is being a skilled fighter and winning tournaments, creating masterworks of the arts, or providing extensive services, etc.) Once you have accomplished certain tasks over the span of your medievalist career, you are rewarded for your efforts by being knighted. I'm fine with the concept of a LAA, but it has absolutely nothing to do with knighthood.

To me, knighthood is about embracing the principles of chivalry.* A knight is one dedicated to living in a knightly manner by serving his/her community, treating others with respect (even those with whom one disagrees), and basically making his/her park a better place. You don't need to have a laundry list of achievements to be a knight, you just have to be a knight in your heart (kind of like the Dagorhir realm of Greyglades approach).

Unfortunately, this fundamental philosophical difference creates tension and conflict. The LAA requires a more ordered, hierarchical approach. Someone needs to determine the standards (what achievements are necessary to become a knight) and then monitor who has met those standards. A knight of the heart might not meet those standards, which proponents of the LAA feel undermines their approach. The LAA crowd feels that the knights of the heart haven't "earned" their title. Conversely, knights of the heart feel that the LAA threatens their freedom to pursue knighthood as they see it. The two sides find themselves at loggerheads.

I don't know if we'll ever reach an agreement between the two sides. I am toying with an approach that will require some achievements (based solely on service to the realm) but won't require as long as the LAA approach. I doubt that my proposal will end the debate. I guess that the only solution is to live and let live. Will the two sides be willing to do that?

* Although there are many varied lists of chivalric virtues, I condense them into the following - Charity, Humility, Valor, Loyalty, Responsibility, Integrity. Thanks to Robb for helping develop the list.