I fully agree with you. Your original post sounded like you were saying that your priest could marry you without ANY involvement of the state - no license needed. If I was guilty of misunderstanding that, than I apologize.
The clergy "pulls the trigger" on the marriage happening, that is certain. What's troubling is that virtually ANYONE can be deemed a member of the "clergy" for purposes of solemnizing a marriage - from an atheistic UCC anthing-goes "minister" to a Wiccan priest. And many do.
No need to apologize. My original post was meant to be a quick, flippant comment tossed out into the internet universe. A poorly written attempt at being clever.
I quickly found, however, that I had opened a can of worms on myself.
And yes, I agree that we need a little more authority on whom is qualified to be ordained as a religious officiant in a marital ceremony. For example, Bill Clinton presided over the ceremony, rights, and marital union of Huma and Anthony Weiner. Wow.
Marriage is a sacred event that is both spiritual and legal... And a lot older than both my State government and our Supreme Court. In my opinion, our Government’s involvement has not necessarily made it a better, nor stronger institution, but it’s also pretty low on my list of things I want to spend time changing.
Oh, and I don’t think that homosexuals should get married. All of this is a fad - a proven unpopular fad - and our governments are unwise to meddle with it.
<How do you do that nice italic font to quote my previous post?