Calling everyone "Rabbi"

[EliJelly]

Yearning for the Rabbi title? Just make sure to become arrested and all the newspapers will have headlines "Rabbi accused of.."

[jye]

Lakewood grocery store: “Rabbi Goldberg, cleanup in aisle 6”.

[S209]

Lakewood grocery store: “Rabbi Goldberg, cleanup in aisle 6”.

Three and a half years later your joke has the same name and same aisle.

In Lakewood it’s “Rabbi Goldberg cleanup  in Aisle 6”.

[YitzyS]

They say a story about the Satmar rov. He was once introduced as "Hagaon Hatzadik." When he got up to the podium, he said, "when I was growing up, there were those who were gaonim, but not so extraordinary in their tzidkus. And there were also those who were great tzadikim, but they weren't necessarily such big geonim. When someone was called a gaon, we understood it meant 'and not a tzadik', and when someone was called tzadik, we understood it to mean 'and not a gaon.'

"Today," the Satmar Rov concluded. "We must say Hagaon Hatzadik, to portray that he's not a tzadik and not a gaon!"

[ExGingi]

He was definitely a very smart man!

[Something Fishy]

I can instantly tell by the outside of a wedding invitation if it was sent by the Brooklyn side of my family or the Lakewood side. Personally I find it utterly ridiculous to be addressed as Rabbi, but if that's the worst that can happen I can live with it.

You address someone as Rabbi if they
a. are an actual Rabbi (in a shul, chinuch, whatever),
b. they're a serious and/or well known talmid chochom, or
c. they need it to feed their ego (#ChessedOfTheDay)

For anyone else, דריי נישט א קאפ.

[ushdadude]

Yes, using "Reb" when referring to Gedolim always bothered me. By the same token, getting mail addressed to "Rabbi" is also off-putting. No so much because I'm not a Rabbi, but because it's just become a default title given everyone.

Agreed. They always forget my other title

[Yehuda57]

I can instantly tell by the outside of a wedding invitation if it was sent by the Brooklyn side of my family or the Lakewood side. Personally I find it utterly ridiculous to be addressed as Rabbi, but if that's the worst that can happen I can live with it.

You address someone as Rabbi if they
a. are an actual Rabbi (in a shul, chinuch, whatever),
b. they're a serious and/or well known talmid chochom, or
c. they need it to feed their ego (#ChessedOfTheDay)

For anyone else, דריי נישט א קאפ.

d. You need to get someone's attention and you don't know their name, as in "Excuse me Rabbi, can you please pass me the ketchup?"

[Sam Finkelstein]

I can instantly tell by the outside of a wedding invitation if it was sent by the Brooklyn side of my family or the Lakewood side. Personally I find it utterly ridiculous to be addressed as Rabbi, but if that's the worst that can happen I can live with it.

You address someone as Rabbi if they
a. are an actual Rabbi (in a shul, chinuch, whatever),
b. they're a serious and/or well known talmid chochom, or
c. they need it to feed their ego (#ChessedOfTheDay)

For anyone else, דריי נישט א קאפ.

Anyone who knows me and still addresses me as "Rabbi" is a 100% Lakewood sycophant.

[chff]

The NY Post calls every jew that gets arrested a Rabbi

[chff]

The mail that I get that's addressed to Rabbi CHFF goes straight in the garbage

[koplonko]

“Reb” is basically used as Mr . Over time Rabbi became the translation of “Reb”.

This.

[joe1234]

Rabbi in Lakewood means the person is Jewish…

[S209]

It’s fascinating to me that it actually bothers people to be called Rabbi. I always assume that when in doubt erring on the side of Rabbi is the safer choice, but perhaps I’m wrong.

[YitzyS]

It’s fascinating to me that it actually bothers people to be called Rabbi. I always assume that when in doubt erring on the side of Rabbi is the safer choice, but perhaps I’m wrong.

My default is to call every resident or Lakewood and the surrounding towns "Rabbi". It's always the safer option. Once in a while when they say "I'm not a rabbi," I joke "If you live in Lakewood, you're automatically a rabbi."

[justaregularguy]

The rabbi part in america hasn’t bothered me too much maybe bc I’m used to it

What bothers me is how everyone in isreal is harav hagoen

[Sam Finkelstein]

It’s fascinating to me that it actually bothers people to be called Rabbi. I always assume that when in doubt erring on the side of Rabbi is the safer choice, but perhaps I’m wrong.

My default is to call every resident or Lakewood and the surrounding towns "Rabbi". It's always the safer option. Once in a while when they say "I'm not a rabbi," I joke "If you live in Lakewood, you're automatically a rabbi."

This is why the title has become cheapened. To you call everyone working in a hospital Dr. to stay on the safe side?

[Euclid]

Only rich people in Lakewood are called Mr.

[Sam Finkelstein]

Only rich people in Lakewood are called Mr.

You clearly haven’t seen the Lakewood Cheder letterhead or dinner flyers…

[aygart]

Only rich people in Lakewood are called Mr.

My employees address me as Mr. does that mean I am rich?