“It should have been left a Religious issue. Once they got the State to sanction marriage, they ceded control over the definition.”
Read Reynolds. Not so. Reynolds argues very explicitly that the federal government has the right to regulate marriage, it cannot redefine, just like it cannot redefine habeaus corpus or trial by jury, instances of the English Common Law that predate the establishment of the Constitution in America.
Reynolds was wrong if that is what it says.
Even if not for the explicit limits in Art 1 Sec 8, there are further limits in art 6 para 2, the 1st Amn, and the 14th.
The Courts can exceed their legal authority as easily as Congress.
Just what in the hell do you think we are trying to “conserve”?