Sorry, but I think theology based on assigning to God imperfect human emotion gets everyone into trouble. Theology based on what is fitting ends up the same way. Creating what we would like to see happen in theology is bad.
Only to the ultramontane party of RCC.
You might be interested in what a former priest historian of the RCC found close to the time of the Pope declaring a Marian doctrine had to say.
pravoslavieto.com/books/papacy_abatt_guette.htm
I dont think Phil Vaz is telling the whole story. Only the parts he likes.
it is clear that (Barret) he does not think of these as major distinctions; for that is something he reserves for another category. Barrett breaks down each of these traditions into smaller units **that might have significant differences (what he calls “major ecclesiastical traditions,” and what we might normally call a true denomination) **Referring again to our seven major ecclesiastical “blocs” (mentioned above, but this time in reverse order): For (1) **Catholic (Non-Roman), there are four traditions, **including Catholic Apostolic, Reformed Catholic, Old Catholic, and Conservative Catholic; for (2)
Marginal Protestants, there are six traditions; for (3)
Anglican, there are six traditions; for (4)
Non-White Indigenous, which encompasses third-world peoples (among whom can be found traces of Christianity mixed with the major tenets of their indigenous pagan religions), there are
twenty traditions, including a branch of Reformed Catholic and a branch of Conservative Catholic; for (5)
Orthodox, there are nineteen traditions; for (6)
Protestant, there are twenty-one traditions; and for (7)
Roman Catholic, there are sixteen traditions, including Latin-rite local, Latin-rite catholic, Latin/Eastern-rite local, Latin/Eastern-rite catholic, Syro-Malabarese, Ukrainian, Romanian, Maronite, Melkite, Chaldean, Ruthenian, Hungarian, plural Oriental rites, Syro-Malankarese, Slovak, and Coptic. It is important to note here that
Barrett places these sixteen Roman Catholic traditions (i.e., true denominations) on the very same level as the twenty-one Protestant traditions (i.e., true denominations). In other words, the true count of real denominations within Protestantism is twenty-one, whereas the true count of real denominations within Roman Catholic is sixteen. Combined with the other major ecclesiastical blocs, that puts the total number of
actual denominations in the world at ninety-two—obviously nowhere near the 23,000 or 25,000 figure that Roman Catholic apologists constantly assert—and that figure of ninety-two denominations includes the sixteen denominations of Roman Catholicism
ntrmin.org/30000denominations.htm
I think its quite dishonest to say that 1500 independent Southern baptist churches are counted as 1500 denominations when in reality the vast majority them have identical doctrine! Don’t you?
Guess I am not sure why lockstep unity is preferred. It certainly is not achievable until the Lord returns
St. Augustine says: In essentials unity, In doubtful things liberty,
But in all things love. This is certainly a tacit admission by Augustine that there WAS NOT lockstep unity in all things.
