Yet more dreadful nattering about the Order

I am heartened, and almost overwhelmed, with the positive response to my announcement of the Order of the Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch. I believe that that response is largely responsible for my weblog's presently being elevated from the status of Squirming Reptile to that of Flapping Bird in the TTLB Ecosystem. How long and whether that will last, only God knows.

Nonetheless, I thank those who have either posted here, or at Fr. Kimel's Pontifications, regarding the Order. For those who are actually interested in all this, I have a bit more information:

1. I am given to understand that Fr. Kimel is now signing all of his documents as "Alvin Kimel, OHHGA". This heartens me beyond measure, and as the protomember of the Order, he certainly has the right to do so. If he, or future members of the Order wish, the Latin title for the Order is: Ordo Piraboli Manualis Sancti Antiochiensis or OPMSA. My thanks to this site for the finding of the neo-Latin term for "hand grenade". While from my small fund of Latin, it probably would have been a tad more correct to put the latin word for Antioch before the phrase for Holy Hand Grenade, I find the acronym for the Order is a tad more latinate just as it is, so it will probably remain that way.

2. At least one individual has asked how to become a member of the Order. As I am really impecunious at the moment, the temptation is to answer: bribery. I shall endeavor to resist that temptation. If, however, you find that I start putting up a wishlist on my weblog, or a PayPal account, little (or even big)purchases or contributions to these certainly could not hurt.

Seriously though, as I mentioned at its first announcement, the Order is to be bestowed on Latins and Westerners who have been particularly accurate or kind in presenting the Eastern Churches to the Western World. At present, I have at least three candidates for the Order in pectore, and I plan on announcing them on either a monthly or, at the very least, a fortnightly basis. The discerning will probably see from the examples I choose the desiderata which I employ in my selection.

The only other suggestion that I have is if one feels that one is worthy of the Order, one bring himself or herself to my attention: I can't bestow the award if I don't know who you are, or what you are doing. And certainly, if you are not given to shameless self-promotion, it would not hurt to bring other worthies to my attention. In the process, I will of course look at your own writings, and consider them as well.

Finally, linking to my weblog is a sure-fire way of bringing yourself to my attention. I will of course do the same for any who do me this courtesy, but it is not necessary. For example, the worthy Fr. Kimel does not link my weblog to his site, but in looking at those to whom he links, it is probably because he only links to good weblogs. A pity, though.