Judge orders baby's name to be changed from Messiah to Martin; Messiah is a title earned by one person Jesus Christ - Judge

A judge in the US has ordered
a baby's first name to be
changed from Messiah to
Martin, arguing that the only
true messiah is Jesus Christ,
reports say.

The parents of seven-month old
Messiah DeShawn Martin had
gone to court in Tennessee
over his last name.

But Child Support Magistrate Lu
Ann Ballew ordered the first
name changed too, local
broadcaster WBIR-TV said.

Last year more than 700 babies
were named Messiah in the US,
according to the
Social Security
Administration .

Christianity refers to Jesus as the
Messiah, while Judaism uses the
term to mean an anticipated
saviour of the Jews.

Dictionary definitions say the
word can mean someone who
is seen as a saviour or a
liberator.

The judge in Cocke County said
the name Messiah could cause
the boy difficulties if he grew up
in such a predominantly
Christian area.

"It could put him at odds with a
lot of people and at this point he
has had no choice in what his
name is,"
Judge Ballew said .

Instead she ordered that the
baby was to be named Martin
DeShawn McCullough, which
includes both parents' last
name.

"The word Messiah is a title and
it's a title that has only been
earned by one person and that
one person is Jesus Christ," the
judge added.

The baby's mother Jaleesa
Martin told WBIR she would
appeal against the judge's
order.

"I didn't think a judge could
change my baby's name
because of her religious beliefs,"
she said.

She said she chose the name
not because of its religious
connotations, but because she
liked how it sounded with her
two other children's names,
Micah and Mason.