Potential solution to the issue of marriage equality and the freedom of religious expression: Since marriage is not only a religious ceremony, but also a legal status conferred by the state, it is safe to say there are at least two functions of marriage. The religious function is the union of two people in the eyes of the religious community and/or god(s) of the particular faith. The legal function is the recognition of mutual fiduciary responsibility between two people and their mutual legal wards by the state. The church has no authority to confer or revoke the legal function, and the state has no authority to confer or revoke the religious function. From this, we can infer the church has no obligation to recognize the legal function, and the state has no obligation to recognize the religious function. My solution hinges on this lack of obligation. Simply put, churches which choose not to recognize the legal function of marriage shall not be given the privilege of conferring it, but still have the authority to confer and annul the religious function. Churches which choose to recognize the legal function of marriage shall be given the privilege to confer it so long as they do so equally under the law while still holding the authority to confer and annul the religious function. The state shall have no authority to annul the religious function of marriage under any circumstance. This solution respects both the religious and state functions of marriage, while giving no preference to either.
Posted on: Wed, 02 Apr 2014 15:06:55 +0000
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