I sense that we're going around in circles, so, in order to avoid bringing up the same points over and over, I'll shorten my response to...
It doesn't, of course, neither does it grant the government the right to change tradition. Government should stay out of it altogether, IMO, and I think that's the conservative opinion as well.
Absolutely, its view is irrelevant. That's what I've been saying all along.
Probably Og, the medicine man. Whenever and whoever it was, it was no doubt before humans invented writing, so we can only speculate.
Once again, we're in agreement.
...then add one more of the contradictions I pointed out in the OP, to wit:
