They just renamed it.
Isn't it
all mostly about the semantics?
I think a lot of the politics and heated discussion would go away if governments would limit the term Marriage to a religious ceremony, which is legally acknowledged or accepted by the state (and since the US has the 1st amendment, no law should distinguish between married and unmarried people, unless the people choose a certain legal status). And allowing a legal form of domestic partnership, which will apply all legal obligations and rights currently associated with marriage, possibly with a checkbox to allow for civil dissolution of the domestic partnership, automatically upon religiously ending the marriage.