{"id":79772,"date":"2013-08-12T06:50:36","date_gmt":"2013-08-12T11:50:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/aleteia.org\/?post_type=post&p=79772"},"modified":"2013-08-12T06:50:36","modified_gmt":"2013-08-12T11:50:36","slug":"judge-no-you-cant-name-your-child-messiah-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/deaconsbench\/2013\/08\/judge-no-you-cant-name-your-child-messiah-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Judge: no, you can\u2019t name your child \u201cMessiah\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Details, from AP:\u00a0<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

A judge in Tennessee changed a 7-month-old boy\u2019s name to Martin from Messiah, saying the religious name was earned by one person and \u201cthat one person is\u00a0Jesus Christ<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Child Support Magistrate Lu Ann Ballew ordered the name change last week, according to WBIR-TV (http:\/\/on.wbir.com\/1cDOeTY).<\/a>The boy\u2019s parents were in court because they could not agree on the child\u2019s last name, but when the judge heard the boy\u2019s first name, she ordered it changed,\u00a0too.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt could put him at odds with a lot of people and at this point he has had no choice in what his name is,\u201d Ballew\u00a0said.<\/p>\n

It was the first time she ordered a first name change, the judge\u00a0said.<\/p>\n

Messiah was No. 4 among the fastest-rising baby names in 2012, according to the\u00a0Social Security Administration<\/a>\u2018s annual list of popular baby\u00a0names.<\/p>\n

The judge in eastern Tennessee said the baby was to be named\u00a0Martin DeShawn McCullough<\/a>, which includes both parents\u2019 last\u00a0name.<\/p>\n

The boy\u2019s mother, Jaleesa Martin, of Newport, said she will appeal. She says Messiah is unique and she liked how it sounded alongside the boy\u2019s two siblings \u2014 Micah and\u00a0Mason.<\/p>\n

\u201cEverybody believes what they want so I think I should be able to name my child what I want to name him, not someone else,\u201d Martin\u00a0said.<\/p>\n

Ballew said the name Messiah could cause problems if the child grows up in Cocke County, which has a large Christian\u00a0population.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe word Messiah is a title and it\u2019s a title that has only been earned by one person and that one person is Jesus Christ,\u201d the judge\u00a0said.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Details, from AP:\u00a0 A judge in Tennessee changed a 7-month-old boy\u2019s name to Martin from Messiah, saying the religious name was earned by one person and \u201cthat one person is\u00a0Jesus Christ.\u201d Child Support Magistrate Lu Ann Ballew ordered the name change last week, according to WBIR-TV (http:\/\/on.wbir.com\/1cDOeTY).The boy\u2019s parents were in court because they could […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":132,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36,11609],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-79772","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-parenting","category-rippred-from-the-headlines"],"yoast_head":"\nJudge: no, you can\u2019t name your child \u201cMessiah\u201d<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Details, from AP:\u00a0 A judge in Tennessee changed a 7-month-old boy\u2019s name to Martin from Messiah, 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