The Liberal Democrat Justice Minister, Simon Hughes, says that the traditional Christian wedding ceremony should no longer have legal status in England and Wales.
Speaking at the Liberal Democrat spring conference, he said that couples who wish to have a Church wedding should have two separate ceremonies before their marriage is recognised by the State.
The legal framework proposed is similar to that in France where couples must undergo a secular, State recognised ceremony before exchanging Christian vows separately if they wish.
He said that the two processes could be undertaken in one wedding ceremony but would have to be clearly divided.
“We should do what the Belgians do and the French do”, he said.
“It can be done even in the same building, on the same day, but you would have a ceremony by which the state recognises the marriage, the wedding, and then the faith community has the ceremony which gives that the authority.”
The proposal follows a landmark ruling by the Supreme Court to permit the Church of Scientology to conduct weddings because it is a legitimate “place of meeting for religious worship”. In the wake of the ruling, the Law Commission is planning to review the future of Britain’s marriage laws.
Andrea Williams of Christian Concern said: “Whatever the intention of this proposal, the effect at this moment would be further marginalisation of the true meaning of marriage in our society. The churches need to stand firm and present God’s beautiful pattern of marriage to society – speaking of it, modelling it and inviting people to enter into it – not allowing it to become just another option amongst many others.”
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