So Warren's problem, like mine, is with with gay marriage. I have no problem with them getting the same death benefits, tax headaches, etc. that come with marriage. My problem is them calling it marriage. Marriage, as practiced here by most Americans, is a Christian thing. And the Bible is very specific on gay being a sin.

I don't believe you are correct that marriage as practiced here is a "Christian thing." If it is, the state should step back -- way back!

But I think it's the legal contract with its innumerable benefits that we're talking about. Getting married as a sacrament of a religious institution is up to the participants and the institution to define. Legally it's a different thing. Marriage's legal definition has certainly changed just in my lifetime in regards to the woman partner's legal rights within the contract and vis a vis the world at large. It's also changed regarding the acceptable racial composition of the partners. To perceive marriage as a static thing is not accurate. To label it as a "Christian thing" as opposed to a "human thing" means government -- federal, state and local -- should have no part in it at all.

Let's all have secular civil unions and put marriage back in the religious context so many wish to force it into.