A judge in America’s bible belt has overturned a lower court ruling and says that a baby can keep the name his mother chose for him:  Messiah.

“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,” said Tennessee Child Support Magistrate Lu Ann Ballew in August, in a ruling that has now been declared an unconstitutional violation of America’s separation of church and state.

The case began when parents Jaleesa Martin and Jawaan McCullough couldn’t agree on whose last name would grace baby Messiah, so they went to the magistrate.  But Ballew took it upon herself to decide the baby boy’s first and last names, filtered through her religious beliefs.

With the judge’s ruling, the baby will henceforth be known as “Messiah DeShawn Martin”.

The case quickly garnered international attention from civil libertarians and people who love to watch Americans act like Americans.