The Communist-George Soros Democrats running the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) have managed to bully churches into becoming partners with them by the creation of the 501c3 (Not-for-Profit) status. This action pushed churches to incorporate themselves as franchises of the United States in order to avoid taxes they never owed in the first place.Don't forget that last sentence.
According to an informative book; Things You Need to Know about Non-profits-Making Sense of Non-Profit Status, by Carleton C. Booker, a ministry and a church are automatically tax exempt. Indeed, this was established from the very beginning of the U.S. since churches with their charitable work took a heavy burden away from the government by providing services so needed by so many.
The church was totally separate from the government. When a couple was to be married, that was strictly a function of the Church that counseled the couples, performed the marriage ceremonies and issued the official marriage certificate which was recognized as a legal instrument. When a couple decided to get married, they would first look for a preacher.