Obivously I don't agree with you on this, because then I wouldn't be willing to do what the situation ends up requiring for my children to be brought up as full members of the Byzantine Rite. My experience with the Byzantine Catholic Church is that it is a very dynamic and living tradition. Granted I grew up in Pittsburgh, which is probably the most active site for this rite in the US. Similarly, the local parish here is very active, full of young families, and growing. The "mission" of religion, as I see it, is to foster the individual's relationship with God and the faith community, and I feel the Byzantine Church is dedicated to that still.

No, it is not a religion which puts much time into actively proselytizing, a la many Protestant denominations, but I do not feel that is a lack. A living tradition is not necessarily one which emphasizes the recruitment of new members. Judaism has historically discouraged individuals in the first flush of conversion, but I don't think it can be argued that it has or will "wither and die" as a result.

I'm not sure to which "ethnic hoops" you are referring. The cultural traditions of the church are those I was brought up with anyway, simply by virtue of being of Ukrainian extraction.