I usually stay completely out of moral debates on the board e.g. the pledge of allegiance, the gay bag thread, for the reason of my own sanity. Trying to speak on a subject like this and not be pigeon holed is in fact difficult. However the tenor of this thread has been quite civil so I'll give it a shot.

Is marriage a religious ceremony recognized by the state, or a state ceremony recognized by the church?
The historical answer is A, a church ceremony recognized by the state. This is why religious persons find the concept of homosexual MARRIAGE so preposterous. In many cases simply creating a different name with the same legal protections would minimalize the outcry against the homosexual community. Don't believe me? Ask a coworker if homosexuals should be able to live together, share bills, take care of each other when they're sick, and any number of other things that married heterosexuals do for their spouses and most will answer "sure its a free country". Then ask if homosexuals should be allowed to be married. The answer is usually no. Homosexual marriage is an attack on the accepted definiton of a marriage, whether you want it to be or not. Redefinition of marriage is what most homosexuals seek, not realizing that politically redefining marriage is a religious war by its nature, since the church doesn't think its any of the states business. Definintion of a new relationship would allow for more understanding. Read this understanding that I think homosexuality is a sin, along with heterosexual promiscuity by the way, and you'll see that I desire to be civil and understanding but I refuse to simply write off my convictions.
Secondly, please in your minds separate bible thumping from redneck. I have a liberal arts education in history and speech, I'm half way through my masters, I can read in three languages. My friends include homosexuals, people of all sorts of religious beliefs, and some with no morals at all. I believe the Bible, but no one will ever meet me and think, "Well there's a red neck for ya". My conviction to disagree with you is not based on tradition or hatred for what I do not understand, it stems from personal study and mediation. I'm not saying that anyone in the thread has been blasting me or even people like me. I'm just saying Christian conservative does not equate to unthinking swine.