In response to Ransom’s earlier post regarding the possibility of unity between the East and West, WRY wrote:

At the risk of sounding silly, I sometimes wonder if a “miracle” will in fact be imposed on us, and I sometimes imagine its vague outlines to be like this: The Orthodox, confronted with full-fledged western individualism, find themselves increasingly unable to “hold things together” and begin longing for a central authority to maintain tradition …. while the Catholics, for their part, long for the spirit of Orthodoxy to help them rid their church of the secular spirit that too often invades it. By sharing our strengths with each other, we then “grow” into a unity beyond our divisions.

Aside from how this might play into a “miracle,” as you say, towards our reunification, I think that we can acknowledge that the issues of secularization and individualism are ravaging forces that are already showing the potential to do much damage to both Churches.  The Orthodox are indeed worried about the devastating effects that parts of Western individualist culture will have on its faithful, and it seems obvious the toll that “the secular spirit” is taking on many Roman Catholic parishes.

I think that, at least in regards to these two issues, both ancient churches would do well to join forces and fight together.  Just how that would happen or what it would look like I don’t know.