The wedding photographer issue is not one of contract, but rather of public accomodations. As an initial matter, a photographer is not practicing any religion -- he or she is running a business for money. Discrimination against any group in private business is wrong -- blacks, jews, gays, etc. -- and in New Mexico it's illegal. It's no different than if the photographer was selling hamburgers at a lunch counter rather than photographs.

Now, the response is that a person should be allowed to discriminate in their privately-owned business if they believe that their religion compels them to do so. And that's an interesting argument, but one the law has rejected -- if your business is not the practice of religion, then you can't discriminate just by saying that Jesus told you to. In other words, it's not enough to say that your lunch counter is whites-only because you believe God said that the races should be separated...just doesn't work that way. Similarly, in places where gays are a protected class, you can't discriminate in your business just by claiming God told you to.

However, that tells you nothing about what churches can do -- churches are not subject to those rules. So if you're a member of a church that believes that black people should not be allowed to marry...you don't have to marry black people. Even now in 2009, you can refuse to let black people even cross the threshold of your church -- your evil beliefs are constitutionally protected. Simple as that.

But as free as you are to discriminate in the practice of your religion, you can't discriminate in business. Opponents of gay marriage attempt to conflate the two (and I can understand why it's confusing...particularly given the increasingly money-driven nature of many of our churches). But they're just different under the law.