What is Religious Exemption

In the past few decades, the question of whether and how civil society should recognize committed intimate relationships between two people of the same sex has become a prominent and divisive policy issue. Marriage as an institution embodies both formal legally enforceable rules and informal arrangements. This chapter discusses the heightened lawmaking efforts after the legalization of same-sex marriage by legislators who are more inclined to use religious claims in their opposition to homosexuality and same-sex relationships.