== Edit on Etymology and terminological usage == 

 I have to object to the reference at the end of this section to Jennifer Roback Morse's article where it says she "claims that the conflation of marriage with contractual agreements is itself a threat to marriage".  This seems to imply that she also, along with Alan Dershowitz, does not think that marriage should entail a legal contract by the state.  I believe that this is a serious misunderstanding of her article.  What she is saying is that marriage cannot be reduced to a mere contract and should not primarily be viewed as a contract by the spouses in the marriage.  She is not at all saying that the state should not legally recognize marriages.  Therefore I believe the reference to her and her article should be removed.