Tennessee judge orders child's name changed from Messiah to Martin

A judge has changed a baby boy's first name to Martin from Messiah.

Tennessee Child Support Magistrate Lu Ann Ballew has ordered the name change, saying Messiah is a title that has been eaed by one person "and that one person is Jesus Christ".

According to WBIR-TV, the parents were in court in easte Tennessee because they could not agree on the seven-month-old baby's last name.

When the judge heard his first name, she ordered it changed, so the baby is now called "Martin DeShawn McCullough".

That name includes both parents' last name.

The boy's mother, Jaleesa Martin, says she will appeal.

She says Messiah is unique.

Naming rights: Jaleesa Martin has been ordered by a judge to change her baby son's name from Messiah to Martin

Christian: Magistrate Ballew has strong feelings about children being named after Jesus - but not with the name Jesus

Messiah is number four among the fastest-rising baby names in 2012, according to the Social Security Administration's annual list of popular baby names.

Judge Ballew said the decision was best for the child, especially as the boy would be growing up in a country with a "large Christian population".