Cobb: Obligatory Seriousness on Gay Marriage

November 19, 2003

Obligatory Seriousness on Gay Marriage

Marriage is an institution ordained of God.

The news is that Massachusetts has said something new. I haven't had an opportunity to review the decision but I'm glad it was a court matter and not a legislative one. I'm hoping they were defending a liberty rather than creating standing. If they were evening the score that's good, if they were advancing or establishing that would be bad. In otherwords this needs to be an anti-discrimination decision to please me.

I've said what I've had to say previously:

We have common law marriages recognized by the state as regards property rights, benefits eligibility and parental rights. The state establishes, de facto civil unions which are not recognized as religious sacraments for these and other reasons, but these are entirely independent of those rights guaranteed by the First Amendment. The rights and responsibilities of partners in civil unions and common law marriages are are defended for different reasons than that of a religious rite of gay marriage. Gay domestic partners should be considered similarly to common law partners for civil purposes.

Therefore the state should not *recognize* 'Marriage' any more than it recognizes 'Extreme Unction'. The state buries unidentified bodies in the ground but that does not make it a Funeral. The state recognizes civil unions but that doesn't make them Marriages.

Nothing has changed. Gays are shacking up and calling it Marriage. If you have to get mad, get mad at the church that marries them in the name of God. The state need only protect that religious freedom. I hope it's not the Episcopal Church that gets way out in front to ordain gay Marriage, but then again, I wasn't married by an Episcopal minister.

UPDATE: I'm satisfied by these excerpts from the decision.

Posted by mbowen at November 19, 2003 07:24 AM

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