Marriage a State Institution?

Marriage, and the state?

I keep hearing about laws being passed or thrown about that state who can marry whom..
Why is it a function of the government at all?
I hear form the opponents of non traditional marriage, that God said that marriage was the holy union of a man and a woman.
But I thought that there was supposed to be a separation of the church and state? There was a time when the church kept all marriage records, I am having a hard time finding when the state took over this roll, and an even harder time finding out why the state got involved in marriage in the first place.

If the church is a union in the eyes of god, then the state should have NOTHING to do with it.

If I belong to a church that says I can marry a sheep, then by god I should be able to marry a sheep. The government can say that I may not use my sheep’s business losses for tax purposes, but damn it if my church says “god says marrying a sheep is okay, then it is okay, by the Con’s very definition of marriage!.

Marriage is not a government institution, by it’s own definition. Marriage licensing should be take out of the hands of government immediately, and all laws pertaining to marriage, as far as who, what, where and how should also disappear. Let government worry about collecting taxes, infrastructure, and the defense of it’s people from enemies both foreign and domestic, and let the work of god be done by those who believe they best know how to define god’s intentions.. and by our constitution, government is not it!


“… as an ordained minister, neither I nor my church, have any misgivings marrying two persons of the same sex.” Rev. C.P. Smith ULC

That should be the last and only word on the subject.