A lot of people have this objection ,but its strange to me. Why do we have to have a hierarchy that isn't terrible? Did God promise us that we'd never have bad rulers? I'm just not convinced of that, so it was never a major stumbling block to me.
Admittedly the liturgical devastation is a bigger one than the hierarchical one, since it does impact the way real people live and practice the faith to a greater degree than the Pope does.
Right, ByzCath. St. John Eudes says Bad Shepherds are a chastisement for the sins of the people; the solution is to return to living very holy lives, so that God will then send us Good Shepherds. This is easily proven from Scripture also, "
‘THE MOST EVIDENT MARK of God’s anger and the most terrible castigation He can inflict upon the world are manifested when He permits His people to fall into the hands of clerics’ who are priests more in name than in deed, priests who practice the cruelty of ravening wolves rather than the charity and affection of devoted shepherds ... When God permits such things, it is a very positive proof that He is thoroughly angry with His people, and is visiting His most dreadful anger upon them. That is why He cries unceasingly to Christians, “Return, 0 ye revolting children . . . and I will give you pastors according to my own heart” (Jer. 3, 14-15). Thus, irregularities in the lives of priests constitute a scourge visited upon the people in consequence of sin.’Good priests are a sign of God’s mercySt John Eudes then goes on to examine the signs of good priests, and their value in God’s sight. Here is a selection of some of the qualities of God priests that are particularly needed in these times, which are a sign of divine grace:On the other hand, the greatest effect of God’s mercy, the most precious grace He bestows upon mankind, is to send worthy priests, men after His own heart, seeking only His glory and the salvation of souls. The greatest blessing that God bestows upon a church, the most signal manifestation of divine grace, is to have a saintly shepherd, be he bishop or priest. This is indeed the grace of graces and the most priceless of all gifts for it includes within itself every other blessing and grace. What is a priest after God’s heart? He is an inestimable treasure containing an immensity of good things." From: http://protectthepope.com/?p=10021Now, to return to the Orthodox, there have historically been 5 issues (1) Filioque, this was raised by the schismatic Patriarch of Constantinople, Photius who opposed Pope St. Nicholas and Patriarch St. Ignatius, in the Ninth Century. (2) Azyme Bread, this was raised by Michael Caerularius in 1054, against Pope St. Innocent IX. Both were answered by St. Thomas in "Contra Errores Graecorum."
(3) Much later on, as at the Fifteenth Century Council of Florence, Mark of Ephesus, an Archbishop, invented another disagreement: Purgatory. Catholic writers adduced many Scriptural and Patristic Proofs of this Dogma, for e.g. from Pope St. Gregory the Great's Dialogues and St. Paul in 1 Cor 3:13-15. (4) Finally, a 19th Century Patriarchal Encyclical objected to the Immaculate Conception Dogma, after it had been defined by Pope Bl. Pius IX. Recent studies have shown that the Immaculate Conception was once widely believed and taught in the East, in both Constantinople and Moscow, even long after Florence, before they later fell into heresy on it.
(5) Finally, some add the Essence-Energies issue, although this did not figure prominently in Florence. What happens is that the word for "energies" in Greek Fathers like St. Maximus and St. Cyril is usually translated "operations" by western translators. These are all relatively deeper areas of theology. For e.g. "
God's activity outside of himself. Also called divine activity ad extra in contrast with divine activity within the Trinity. The Fourth Lateran Council and the Council of Florence teach that all of God's activity outside the trinity is done simultaneously and equally by all three persons. Thus everything that God does in the world of creatures, whether naturally or supernaturally, is the operation of all three divine persons." https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/dictionary/index.cfm?id=33161 This last point is one I relied on in the article.
Then, of course, the moral ones, like formal acceptance of contraception, totally contrary to all the Church Fathers unanimously.
Anyway, the main thing is this - Our Lady of Fatima has told us that the way to bring Peace to the world is through the Consecration of Russia by the Pope and the Bishops, and by the Orthodox returning to full Re-Union with the Catholic Church. We ought to believe Her words, and live by it, which means we ought not to separate from the Pope and the Bishops, but work under them for that Re-Union.
God bless.