Marriage is one of the 7 sacraments of the church. A sacrament means God is accomplishing a spiritual work. In the marriage sacrament, you go into the church as two people, but you come out United as One Flesh in His eyes. When you put God first and have Him bless your marriage in this way, He will bless and be invited into your household and marriage it is important to fulfill that sacrament in the House of God.Your marriage will be seen as a union in the eyes of God if you get married in the church. If you can’t find a Tewahdo Church, it is advised to seek other sister churches that we are in communion with (meaning those which we share the sacraments with--- the Eritrean, Ethiopian, Coptic, Malankara, Syrian, and Armenian Oriental Orthodox churches are in communion). Traveling to a Tewahdo Church to perform the sacrament of matrimony is a worthy investment and should not go unexamined. If you need to go to court afterwards, you can. The Court is legal, the church is spiritual. They are two different things. For further questions on this topic, address your father of confession or get in contact with a priest.