In Romania, the civil and religious ceremonies of marriage are not the same, due primarily to the fact that evangelical ministers do not have the authority to act as ministers of the state. (And I don\u2019t think my Baptist friends there would accept the authority if it were offered to them.)<\/p>\n
Our December 6 journey to the Courthouse with friends, family, and witnesses was a hoop to jump through. We\u2019ve never considered the 6th to be our anniversary because the civil ceremony was simply a precursor to the real moment of marriage, which took place in Corina\u2019s church.<\/p>\n
I\u2019m not saying that now is the time for a divorce between civil and Christian marriage. I haven\u2019t signed the pledge. (I\u2019m with Tolkien, not Lewis on this issue.) But I do think we can learn something from brothers and sisters in other parts of the world who have never had nor sought the ministerial privileges of authorizing civil marriage.<\/p>\n