LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 2023, Page 220

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THEOLOGICAL DOCUMENTS­­—COMMISSION ON THEOLOGY AND CHURCH RELATIONS

Marriage Between
Church and State

A REPORT ON CLERGY SERVING AS ‘AGENTS OF THE STATE’1

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N ITS 1981 REPORT HUMAN SEXUALITY:
A THEOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE, the LCMS
Commission on Theology and Church Relations
(CTCR) spoke of the important relationship between the
divine institution of marriage and the institutionalization
of marriage within earthly societies — its character as an
“earthly estate.”2 To state that marriage is a divine institution is to say that God Himself brings about marriage.
He joins together the couple and thereby effects their
marriage. But He acts by means of human beings and institutions. HS1981 reminded us that the “essence of marriage” — the source of its validity as a divinely instituted
earthly estate — is mutual consent, the “commitment of
a man and woman to a permanent sharing of their lives.”3

Such a commitment inevitably has a public dimension:
It is recognized by others to be a marriage. Such public
recognition means that marriage must meet particular
customary expectations. For example, both Christians
and non-Christians have ordinarily sought the blessing
or approval of parents before being married.4 This and
many other customs and laws restrict what is and is not a
marriage. In our context, legal restrictions clearly indicate
that marriage is subject to civil authority. These restrictions
1 In correspondence dated April 22, 2015, LCMS President Rev. Dr.
Matthew Harrison first raised the potential of a request for the
CTCR to consider the matter of whether clergy should continue to
serve as agents of the state in the matter of marriage. Since that time,
the LCMS Southeastern District asked for guidance with regard to
marriages that do not secure legal recognition (SED overture 02-1809) and President Rev. Dr. Donald Fondow of the LCMS Minnesota
North District also raised questions pertaining to this same matter
(correspondence dated April 16, 2018).

Marriage Between
Church and State

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3

HS1981, 10.

HS1981, 10–11.

6

4

HS1981, 13.

HS1981, 11.

7

HS1981, 11.

MARRIAGE BETWEEN CHURCH AND STATE

The “definition” from Genesis 2:24 begins, importantly, with a man and a woman. It then stresses three
elements — leaving parents, holding fast (“cleaving”)
and becoming one flesh (physical union). God defines
marriage by way of this description. That the definition
endures is evident as our Lord Jesus affirms this very
verse in Matthew 19, and His apostle, Paul, echoes the
same words in Ephesians 5.
The definition of marriage in Scripture does not
employ the kind of terminology used by law codes today.
Scripture’s language is descriptive — emphasizing verbs
as noted above. The verbs describe the actions that, cumulatively, result in the bond of a man and a woman in
marriage. Does this merely describe a form of marriage in
biblical times, like a reference to Aaron’s robe in Exodus
28:4, or does it prescribe an enduring pattern for marriage? Some Christians who support same-sex marriages
and other redefinitions of marriage argue that Genesis
2:24 is only descriptive.9
Such a view does not square with the Lord’s teaching
in Matthew 19:1–6. Jesus declares that what was true in
the beginning, when God made male and female and
joined them together, continues to be the case when
He quotes the conclusive verse from Genesis 2:24 that
begins with the term “therefore” (‫)־ לַע ןּכ‬, and then employs verbs with a continuing sense (see Matt. 19:5). The
8

‫ בׇזע‬is the Hebrew verb translated “shall leave” in the ESV; ‫ קׇבּד‬is the
verb translated “hold fast”; and ‫ הׇיׇה‬is translated “shall become.” The
verbs are in the imperfect (similar to future) tense.

9

For example, Austen Hartke and Emmy Kegler, Reconciling Scripture
for Lutherans (ReconcilingWorks: Lutherans for Full Participation, 2019). The CTCR website provides two separate responses by
individuals to this booklet. See Thomas Egger’s (https://files.lcms.org/
wl/?id=jUl77cQebrkotQcoTWvnS4DgkKuTPsIJ) and Timothy Saleska’s
(https://files.lcms.org/wl/?id=UIwSl1gWZ9rcsl22eX4cGqxBUVkmrK9y)
reactions.

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continuing force of this standard for marriage is doubly
certain when Jesus emphatically concludes His answer in
verse 6: “So they are no longer two but one flesh. What
therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.”
All of this, of course, is in answer to a hypothetical
question about divorce that the Pharisees have devised
to trick Him. Jesus’ answer indicates that, far from being
merely descriptive, Genesis 2:24 has enduring validity in
its understanding of marriage. Rather than allowing for
modifications to a merely descriptive view of marriage
long ago, Jesus instead takes people back to that description so that they will understand the enduring essence of
marriage. The following verses in Matthew 19 (vv. 7–12)
include Jesus’ condemnation of divorces that reflect only
the hardness of heart of humanity, and not any propensity
for God to redefine marriage.
Paul echoes the same words from Genesis 2:24 in
Ephesians 5. His discussion of marriage in verses 22–33
views earthly marriage in parallel with the marriage of
Christ and His Bride, the Church. As Christ and His Bride
are, so the husband and wife are to be. Again, this is not
merely descriptive, for how could it be when every earthly
marriage includes a fallible, sinful husband and a fallible,
sinful wife? No, the emphasis here is entirely prescriptive.
The husband is to pattern his care and conduct toward his
wife according to Christ, just as the wife is to pattern her
marital relationship according to Christ’s holy Bride.
Consequently, on the basis of the words of our Lord,
we must echo and reaffirm the understanding of HS1981
regarding the Bible’s view of marriage: “Marriage is the
lifelong union of one man and one woman entered into
by mutual consent.” 10 Ephesians 5 reminds us of God’s
will for how this lifelong union is to be lived out in the
lives of men and women in whom the Holy Spirit’s sanctifying power is at work.

10

HS1981, 10.

A REPORT ON CLERGY SERVING AS ‘AGENTS OF THE STATE’

2023 Convention Workbook

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A REPORT ON CLERGY SERVING AS ‘AGENTS OF THE STATE’

tection of our life on earth.” In the Large Catechism,
Luther speaks of the distinctiveness of honor: “Honor
includes not only love, but also deference, humility,
and modesty directed (so to speak) toward a majesty
concealed within them.”12 Then he applies the Fourth
Commandment not only to “fathers by blood,” but also
to “fathers of a household, and fathers of the nation” and
then to “spiritual fathers” (economic, governmental and
pastoral authorities respectively).13
11

This means that, since God has instituted marriage
as a human institution, temporal authorities may shape
various aspects of that institution. 14 We might say that
God’s primary definition of marriage — a man and
woman who consent to a lifelong union — may be
supplemented by secondary, humanly defined elements.
Humans, therefore, also define marriage, but only in a
secondary way. This distinction between “primary” and
“secondary” definitions should not be misunderstood.
We note that marriage as a divine institution does not
depend on special revelation. Rather, natural law leads all
of humanity to marriage. Although marriage may differ
in some ways, according to various times and cultures,
nevertheless men and women have consented to marital
bonding in a manner that is recognized publicly (by a
tribe, a community, a nation, etc.). Despite great variety,
marriage is nevertheless marked by public acts that
enable its acknowledgement as such within an individual

11

Luther’s Small Catechism with Explanation (St. Louis: Concordia,
2017), 81 (Question 54).

12

LC I 106; KW 401. References to the Lutheran Confessions are from
Robert Kolb and Timothy J. Wengert eds., The Book of Concord:
The Confessions of the Evangelical Lutheran Church (Minneapolis:
Fortress, 2000), with the specific confession abbreviated, the section
and paragraph numbers, and the page in the volume following the
abbreviation KW.

13

LC I 158; KW 408.

14

Note the valuable role that governments ought to play in human society — a role that God has given to them. On this, see Page 6 of the
Commission’s Guidelines for Crucial Issues in Christian Citizenship
(1968): “Civic order is not to be thought of in static terms. It is rather
to be conceived of as that condition of society in which the many
and varied tensions inherent in any kind of community life are kept
in creative balance to provide opportunity for fulfillment in terms
of both personal life and group enterprise. These are the conditions
which constitute that ‘quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and
honesty’ to which the apostle refers in 1 Timothy 2:2.” (Available
online at https://files.lcms.org/wl/?id=0jF0zbZTx87Q5UNMhO5zThuSVpPMyp5Y.)

The State and Marriage
Where does “the state” fit into the words of Genesis 2:24?
As HS1981 shows, by obliging us to honor and obey
parents, God also obliges honor and obedience to other
human “authorities.” As the 2017 edition of the Small
Catechism explains: “Other authorities (legal guardians,
pastors, teachers, employers, government officials) also
serve as God’s representatives for the support and pro-

As a divine institution that God enacts by means of
human authority, marriage stands firmly between the
human and the divine, or, as we may put it today, between church and state. The church is responsible to God
to uphold and teach rightly what He does in bringing
together a man and woman in marriage. The state is responsible to God to order and safeguard marriage for the
well-being of the individuals and communities under its
authority. Christians, therefore, seek to obey both God
and man with regard to marriage. To be obedient to God
requires honor and obedience to the human authorities
God establishes (Rom. 13:1–7). Such honor is a necessary
concern in a Christian consideration of marriage.

Commission on Theology and Church Relations, Human Sexuality:
A Theological Perspective (St. Louis: The Lutheran Church—Missouri
Synod, 1981), 10–11. Download the report at https://files.lcms.org/
wl/?id=clwPAaUhVLMUHnmahFbTvJtQUnwj0yYS. In 1981 the CTCR
prepared Human Sexuality, a detailed report addressing foundational
matters of gender, marriage and sexuality, as well as then-current
problems facing the Christian understanding of those topics. (Hereafter abbreviated as HS1981). An update to the report is currently being
undertaken by the Commission.

A REPORT OF THE COMMISSION ON THEOLOGY AND CHURCH RELATIONS
THE LUTHERAN CHURCH—MISSOURI SYNOD | JUNE 2021

As we review the 1981 report, several questions may
emerge. The first is, who defines marriage? The obvious
answer for Christians, as is evident throughout the 1981
report, is that God alone defines it. He does so “from
the beginning” (Matt. 19:4, 8) in the simple assertion of
Genesis: “Therefore a man shall leave his father and his
mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become
one flesh” (2:24).8 In this verse, Scripture claims — even
as we confess — that God Himself gives marriage as part
of His primordial creating work. As the “therefore” in
2:24 makes plain, marriage comes from God the Creator.
As He begins this world, He begins marriage. It is His act
and, therefore, His alone to define.

Therefore, although marriage is established by God,
the 1981 report declares that marriage is not “primarily
an ecclesiastical matter.” Indeed, in the first centuries of
the church, marriage was viewed as a secular act. This
does not negate the reality of marriage as a divine institution. Rather, it is a reminder that “as a divinely ordained
earthly estate [marriage] can be legitimately contracted
in the civil realm.”6 However, the secular or civil aspect
of marriage rightly does not in any way discourage the
long-standing Christian practice of solemnizing the
vows of marriage in the context of public worship with
the Word of God and prayer. Such “consecration signifies
that marriage is holy because it is God-ordained and that
it can be received with thanksgiving (1 Tim. 4:5).”7

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A REPORT ON CLERGY SERVING AS ‘AGENTS OF THE STATE’

Defining Marriage

“ordinarily serve human well-being — a purpose for
which God has established civil authority (Rom. 13:4a).”
Their intent is to safeguard spouses and children, but they
also “encourage thoughtful, reflective commitment and
thus protect the interest not only of society but also of
those who think they are in love.” For all these reasons,
any cavalier or “unjustified disregard” for marriage laws is
a sin against the Fourth Commandment.5

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society. Our nature itself — as created by God — leads
humanity into marriage according to right reason. The
great variety within marriage, however — how it is contracted, what it implies regarding property, and so forth
— is an indication that in a fallen world reason’s guidance is never infallible. Hence, many secondary elements
accrue to marriage in its various cultural manifestations
and may or may not be beneficial.
15

Some kinds of secondary definitional elements are
purely cultural in nature. The kinds of garments and
accoutrements expected to be worn for a wedding (see Is.
61:10; Matt. 22:11–12) are one example. More importantly,
certain rituals are typically part of localized, secondary
definitions of marriage. 16 The provision for the exchange
of a dowry is a significant example because it was (and is)
so often included in marriage customs. But, in addition,
the employment or absence of verbal commitments, the
specific commitments that might occur between husband and wife and their respective families, rules about
divorce, and many other aspects of marriage have varied
over time.17 Among the more significant changes that have
taken place is that, while throughout nearly all human
history marriage was understood primarily as an economic
tie between families, only in the past few centuries (and
especially in the western world) has marriage come to be
understood primarily from a romantic standpoint.18
15

In much of human history, marriage is not subject to the sort of civil
authority to which we are accustomed. Nevertheless, even in preliterate cultures without any written law codes, marriage exists and does
so under the authority of cultural or customary restrictions that have
a force equal to written law. The human authorities that administer
and support such customs thus hold their “office” from God (Rom.
13:1–7) as much as any other governing authority. This reality testifies to the natural law — the law written on the human heart (Rom.
2:12–16).

16

Note this line from Luther’s Marriage Booklet: “‘So many lands, so
many customs,’ says the common proverb. For this reason, because
weddings and the married estate are worldly affairs, it behooves those
of us who are ‘spirituals’ or ministers of the church in no way to order
or direct anything regarding marriage, but instead to allow every
city and land to continue their own customs that are now in use.” See
Marriage Booklet 1; KW 367–68.

17

Stephanie Coontz shows some of the various understandings of
marriage and how it has developed worldwide through the centuries.
See Marriage, A History: How Love Conquered Marriage (New York:
Penguin Books, 2005).

18

“For most of history it was inconceivable that people would choose
their mates on the basis of something as fragile and irrational as love
and then focus all their sexual, intimate, and altruistic desires on the
resulting marriage” (Coontz, Marriage, 15). She notes this does not
exclude love between spouses (which clearly often developed within
marriage) or imply that people did not fall in love. She does, however,
cite widespread examples of the prevailing bias against marriage for
love and, in some cases, against too much affection between spouses
(17–23).

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