RABBI (Heb., master), an honorary title of the Jewish matters of the law, which is first found applied after the time of Herod, subsequently to the disputes between the two schools of Shammai (q.v.) and Hillel (q.v.). It was in common useat the time of Christ, who is addressed as such by his disciples and the common people. Other forms of the same title are rab, rabban, rabbon ("rabburti")—the first, like rabbi, being more a general term for a certain recognized authority, the latter applying more'strictly to a head of an academy. The title rabban was first given to the grandson of Hillel, Gamaliel (q.v.), and was only borne by seven other exalted•chiefs of schools. Properly speaking, the following dignities alone were of old considered " official ": 1. Sopher, scribe, one who occupied himself with copying and commenting on the Scriptures, and who, when elected to the sanhedrim (q.v.), received the title of chacham (sage); 2. Rabba-n, nomodidaskalos, one who held popular orations, homiletically or otherwise treating of the law. Out of the number of the regular disciples (talmidim) were chosen the chaberim (colleagues), who, again, were elected to the dignity of a rabbi by the "aemichah," or imposition of hands by three members of the sanhedrim. At present
nothing but the degree, of "morenn," our teacher, bestowed upon a candidate who proves his erudition in the written and oral law and all its bearings before a college of rabbis, is wanted to render him eligible for the post of a rabbi, which, however, carries uo authority whatsoever with it, save on a very few ritual points. We need hardly allude to the popular fallacy of the rabbi of our day bring a kind of " priest" in the sense of the Old Testament. He is simply the teacher of the young, delivers sermons, assists at marriages and divorces; and the like, and has to decide on some ritual ques tions. Up to the times of the removal of the "disabilities" in Europe, he had on some occasions also to give judgment in civil matters, in accordance with the "Choshen Mishpat," a legal text-book, derived from the talmudical and post-talmudical authorita tive decisions.