Is there a movement to centralize Rabbinical authority through all Jewish communities?

Question

Due to the exile, Jewish civilization ended up splintering off into various sub-groups.

• Ashkenazim
• Sephardim/Mizrahim
• etc.

Through this division, Judaism developed a series of "flavors" with regards to common practices and Minhags to each community. The downside of this is we sometimes have cultural conflicts which divide communities from having true universal worship.

Even in a country like Israel, which is supposed to be the focal point of Jewish civilization, the Chief Rabbinate is shared between two different meta-communities (a Sephardic and Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi subdivisions)

Has there been any real push by the various sub-communities to try and bridge the gaps into a new universal center? Or is the topic considered closed off until Mashiach?

Answer 1

I think there are two aspects that turn this idea to truly impossible till the coming of the Messiah (and probably even later):

1. You probably underestimate the power of the Halachic tradition. There's no Ashkenazi Beyt Din (or other authority) that can possibly turn down the Psikah of Rem"o in favor of the Mechaber. And vice verse. It is not only single Halochos (eating Kitnios on Pesach) but the whole method and tradition of Pesikah. That's why R' Ovadiah and R' Elyashiv Ztz"L could not possibly sit in the same court.
   .
   This is so serious, we can't make the Litvaks and the Hassidim to sit together, let alone Ashkenazi and Sefardi.

2. Don't underestimate the [political and ] social power of every community authority. Nobody will willingly give up on their power and make one Rabanut (or one Beyt Din). That's a lot of money, jobs, influence etc. The tendency is exactly the opposite - to create as much divergence as possible to let as many families as possible to make their living (as King Dovid said "לכו והתפרנסו זה מזה).

Bonus point: At least in Israel (it is less pronounced abroad) each community represents a completely different mentality (hierarchy of values) within the same Halachic compendium (they all keep Shu"A in full). Just like intermarriages are almost non-existent because of this point, even if we could agree on the Halachah we couldn't bridge this problem.