GET GOVT OUT OF THE MARRIAGE BUSINESS
The leader of Canada's center-right Progressive Conservative Party has come up with what he believes is a solution to the gay marriage debate: getting government to get out of the marriage business. According to the CBC, Tory chief Peter "MacKay's plan would leave the traditional definition of marriage alone, but would leave it up to the churches. The government would recognize the union of two people - any two people - with a different name."

"We wouldn't call it marriage," MacKay noted. "We would call it a union; we would call it a registered domestic partnership. There is another description, that would have the same status, same legal definition, same level of equality under the law."

This chances of this plan passing seem slim. The Tories only have a handful of seats in the federal House of Commons. The centrist Liberal government, which has a substantial parliamentary majority, is pushing a bill that would allow gay marriages. I happen to prefer the Tory plan as it gets government out of a business which really belongs to churches. Let the government sanction civil unions, which is really akin to a contractual partnership.

Some will deplore the idea of the venerable institution of marriage being reduced to a contractual partnership. But I disagree that MacKay's proposal would do that. To a certain extent, it's reflective of how society has changed. More and more people are living together and having long-term relationships outside the context of marriage. Furthermore, the institution of marriage is best defended not by government, but by churches. It's the role of houses of worship to promote individual morality and help protect our immortal souls; it's not the role of secular government.

I don't think the government should be blessing, condemning or otherwise morally judging any couple in a matter unrelated to the law. The government represents law (in theory); religion represents personal morality (ditto). If two consenting adults want to get a civil union, so be it. If they agree to dissolve the civil union, so be it. The only government role should be to legally recognize that domestic parternship as they would a business partnership. Nothing more, nothing less.