Pastor: Why is Any Marriage Legal?

Should gay marriage be legal? , but when we asked a local pastor last year, he said he'd rather see the government out of the marriage business altogther.

The Rev. Paul Zorn, pastor of the and the Hurdtown Methodist Church, told Patch in 2011 he'd like to see the separation of church and state extend to marriages.

“As far as the government goes, I think it should not be in the marriage business, but rather provide licenses for civil unions.  If someone wishes to get married, they would choose a religious institution—church, synagogue, mosque—that shared their views,” Zorn said.

That way, he said, a church could abstain from marrying two people if it didn't think it was proper, but everyone would recieve equal treatment under the law.

“This would also not penalize those of a non-religious background or leaning, since the status of all unions would be the same,” Zorn said at the time. "As for those who are not affiliated with a church, there are many clergy who do perform marriages for those who are not members of their community, as I have done on many occasions."

Jefferson Patch's Facebook fans—at least the first few we heard from after Obama's big announcement Wednesday—seemed to support the idea of gay marriage.

"All for it" Alyson Music wrote.

"I think its about time a president supports gay marriage and admits it openly," Pauline Fisher said.

But at least one thought it was a political move. Jill Pettoni wrote she thinks Obama's "looking for votes for re-election.

What do you think? Should gay marriage be legal? Should their even be a legal concept of marriage at all? Let us know in the comments below.