Inquisitor, you raise a GREAT question! I completely agree. We should have ONE Patriarch. Oh, but before we get that all settled, let me just make a quick phone call:
*Ring, Ring; Ring, Ring; Ring, Ring*
Me: "Hello, is this Heaven?"
Operator: "Yes, who may I ask is calling?"
Me: "James Patrick Rottnek II. I live in Bagdad, Arizona. I was hoping to talk to Jesus for a sec."
Operator: "Oh, ok. He has a lot of stuff he'd like to get past your thick skull, but I'm sure he'd answer a question for you. Let me just transfer you."
Jesus: "Hello, are you there?"
Me: "Hi Jesus, I'm glad you weren't too busy to talk. I have a real problem. You see, I think there ought to be one Patriarch, why do we need all these bishops all over the place? But, I'm sure that if I bring up the point, my priest will say "But Jesus had 12 disciples" so I have a favor."
Jesus: "What's that?"
Me: "I want you to either let everyone know you only really meant to have one disciple, and it was a mistake to pick the other eleven, or please unselect the last eleven. You do have an "undo" button up there right?"
In all seriousness, if we were meant to have just one Bishop, why did Jesus have twelve disciples? And why did the Disciples replace Judas?
Besides, instead of a substitute for Christ, here on earth, we have Christ leading us from heaven, much as a President doesn't go out to the front lines of a war zone, but rather runs the war from the capital city. That's where Jesus is - the capital of His Kingdom.