In reply to the question of procreation and marriage I have attended emotionally moving and loving ceremonies where older people have been married in church with the 'tactful' removal of those lines from the 'standard' ceremony .

I would like to pose a question to some folks here however about the refusal to contract a civil union on the grounds of 'religious belief 'by a civil servant.

Some churches still regard the 'divine standard' for marriage as lifelong commitment to one's spouse, and nothing else; even though divorce was permitted in some cases under the Old Testament economy

Assuming that one spouse abandons the other is the 'innocent party' to be denied the opportunity for remarriage and the possibility of family life in the eyes of their God and even the state?
If their church refuses to marry them (as may indeed occur) is it acceptable that a registrar should also discriminate against their civil union for 'religious' reasons?