page_title: Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament
section_title: Rabboni and Rabbi
hierarchical_section_title: Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament / Titles / Rabboni and Rabbi
caption_attribution_description: English: Correggio: Noli Me Tangere, c. 1525, oil on canvas, 130 x 103 cm (51 1/8 x 40 1/2 in.), Museo del Prado, Madrid
context_page_description: Two names and a variety of titles are used to refer to Jesus in the New Testament. In Christianity, the two names Jesus and Emmanuel that refer to Jesus in the New Testament have salvific attributes. After the crucifixion of Jesus the early Church did not simply repeat his messages, but focused on him, proclaimed him, and tried to understand and explain his message. One element of the process of understanding and proclaiming Jesus was the attribution of titles to him. Some of the titles that were gradually used in the early Church and then appeared in the New Testament were adopted from the Jewish context of the age, while others were selected to refer to, and underscore the message, mission and teachings of Jesus. In time, some of these titles gathered significant Christological significance.
  Christians have attached theological significance to the Holy Name of Jesus. The use of the name of Jesus in petitions is stressed in John 16:23 when Jesus states: "If you ask the Father anything in my name he will give it you." There is widespread belief among Christians that the name Jesus is not merely a sequence of identifying symbols but includes intrinsic divine power.
context_section_description: In John 20:16, when Mary Magdalene encounters Jesus shortly after the Resurrection, she calls him Rabbouni (ῥαββουνί) literally my great [one] or (more extensively) my Teacher. For those who do not speak Aramaic the Gospel of John translates this as "teacher", a Rabbi being a Jewish teacher, or master. In the New Testament, the term Rhabbouni is only used by the Magdalene here in John 20:16 and in Mark 10:51 by the blind man Bartimaeus in the account of the miracle of healing the blind near Jericho.
  The Rabbi title is used in several New Testament episodes to refer to Jesus, but more often in the Gospel of John than elsewhere and does not appear in the Gospel of Luke at all. In Matthew's account of the Last Supper (Matthew 26:22-25) when Jesus says that he will be betrayed by one of his Apostles, one after another the Apostles say "Surely it is not I, Lord" but Judas Iscariot says "Surely it is not I, Rabbi", using the term Rabbi instead of Lord. The Iscariot again calls Jesus Rabbi in Matthew 26:49 when he betrays him in the Kiss of Judas episode, heavily implying he may never have acknowledged, believed, or understood the divinity of Jesus.
  In Matthew 23:8-10, Jesus affirms the term Rabbi and Father are not to be used for any man, but only for God and for Christ.
  Jesus is called Rabbi in conversation by Apostle Peter in Mark 9:5 and Mark 11:21, and by Judas Iscariot in Mark 14:45
  by Nathanael in John 1:49, where he is also called the Son of God in the same sentence. On several occasions, the disciples also refer to Jesus as Rabbi in the Gospel of John, e.g. 4:31, 6:25, 9:2 and 11:8.
  Intimating that the title Rabbi was used by status-seeking Pharisees (who "sit on the seat of Moses") and use the title as a sign of authority, in Matthew 23:1-8 Jesus rejected the title of Rabbi for his disciples, saying: "But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your teacher, and all ye are brethren". The role of teacher is also referred to the Paraclete, mentioned by Jesus for the first time on the night before the Crucifixion.
caption: Mary Magdalene calling Jesus Rabboni and receiving the response: Noli me Tangere, depicted by Antonio da Correggio, circa 1534.
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