Kate Forbes and the conundrum of marriage

The fuss over Kate Forbes’ opposition to gay marriage shows that the concept of marriage has become a serious muddle. The depth of the muddle tends to be evaded, as pundits don’t generally want to admit that a basic thing like marriage is really confusing. 

But it is. It’s oddly hard to say what marriage is. Does it still have a religious dimension? Or is it an essentially secular thing that only has a religious dimension if you’re religious?

Until recently, such questions troubled no one. Marriage was a mix of religious and secular elements, but the ambiguity was unproblematic. It was agreed to be a legal contract with a religious dimension that was variable; one could choose one’s level of religiosity. For non-religious couples there was still a faintly audible religious hum, created by centuries of religious symbolism.