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In most countries, married couples are treated as a single economic entity, and when one partner dies, the other may inherit all of their property in a simpler system than would be required without the marriage.
In most countries, married couples are treated as a single economic entity, and when one partner dies, the other may inherit all of their property in a simpler system than would be required without the marriage.
African-Americans were not allowed to marry in all areas of the US until after the civil war, and mixed race couples were only allowed to marry in all areas of the US after a 1967 decision in the US Supreme Court.
Same-sex couples are not allowed to marry in many areas of the world, although this restriction was lifted in April 2001 by Holland and January 2003 by Belgium. By the end of 2004, same-sex marriage was legal in most Canadian provinces and in the Yukon and is now enshrined in Canadian federal law C-38. <ref>[http://www.religioustolerance.org/hom_marr.htm]</ref>
== Bible ==
== Bible ==
Civil marriage is a legal [[contract]]. In the state constitutions of almost all states, this contract must be between one man and one woman. It gives each member certain rights and obligations. Most commonly, these include [[power of attorney]], [[inheritance]] rights, and rights in relation to any children they may have.
Civil marriage is a legal [[contract]]. In the state constitutions of almost all states, this contract must be between one man and one woman. It gives each member certain rights and obligations. Most commonly, these include [[power of attorney]], [[inheritance]] rights, and rights in relation to any children they may have.
The Scandinavian nations and the UK allow same-sex couples to gain benefits by registering a legal commitment, although they acquire fewer advantages than opposite-gender couples receive automatically upon marriage.
In the U.S. there are over a thousand federal benefits to marriage but none to same-sex civil partnerships. Couples registering same-sex relationships receive some state benefits in California, Connecticut, New Jersey and Vermont. Rights accruing from same-sex marriages contracted in other states are respected in Rhode Island, and some restricted benefits are available to same-sex partners in Hawaii and Maine.<ref>[http://www.religioustolerance.org/hom_marr.htm]</ref>
==References==
==References==
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