“I think you believe I accept the original premise...that would be wrong.”
I did not think you did.
“But I do believe Romans teaches us willful rejection is damnable.”
That is what I thought you were saying. So, you believe that the Roman Church believes that God damns all, let’s say, Orthodox people who willfully reject, better yet, vocally scorn, the hierarchial system of the Roman Church? I can guarantee to you that if Orthodox hierarchs believed that is what Rome teaches, they wouldn’t waste five minutes talking about reunion with +BXVI and +BXVI, knowing that, wouldn’t be wasting his time with them.
Do you disagree with the book of Romans?
Be back after Mass...
I can't speak to what Orthodox hierarchs believe about what Rome teaches, but Rome herself seems crystal clear:
This Sacred Council wishes to turn its attention firstly to the Catholic faithful. Basing itself upon Sacred Scripture and Tradition, it teaches that the Church, now sojourning on earth as an exile, is necessary for salvation. Christ, present to us in His Body, which is the Church, is the one Mediator and the unique way of salvation. In explicit terms He Himself affirmed the necessity of faith and baptism(124) and thereby affirmed also the necessity of the Church, for through baptism as through a door men enter the Church. Whosoever, therefore, knowing that the Catholic Church was made necessary by Christ, would refuse to enter or to remain in it, could not be saved.
For those who know (= believe) that the Catholic Church was founded by Christ and intended to be necessary for salvation, non-membership is not an option.
All others we submit to the mercy of God.