26 Facts About Chaim Kanievsky

Shemaryahu Yosef Chaim Kanievsky was an Israeli Haredi rabbi and posek.

Chaim Kanievsky was a leading authority in Haredi Jewish society on legal and ethical practice.

Chaim Kanievsky was born in Pinsk, then part of Poland, as the eldest son of Rabbi Yaakov Yisrael Chaim Kanievsky and Pesha Miriam, sister of Rabbi Avrohom Yeshaya Karelitz.

Chaim Kanievsky's father served as his sandek at his brit milah and named him Shmaryahu Yosef Chaim, after both his grandfathers: Rabbi Shmaryahu Yosef Karelitz, the rabbi of Kosava, and Rabbi Chaim Peretz Kanievsky.

Chaim Kanievsky later transferred to Lomza Yeshiva in Petah Tikva, under the leadership of Rabbi Reuven Katz.

On 7 Kislev 5712, Chaim Kanievsky married Batsheva Esther, daughter of Rabbi Yosef Shalom Elyashiv.

Chaim Kanievsky's blessings were often used to encourage participation in various campaigns, such as fundraising or vaccination drives, in exchange for his blessing.

Chaim Kanievsky served on the rabbinical committee of Maayanei Hayeshua Medical Center.

Chaim Kanievsky died from cardiac arrest at his home on Friday, 15 Adar II 5782.

Chaim Kanievsky's funeral was held two days later, on Sunday, 17 Adar II 5782, in Bnei Brak.

Chaim Kanievsky was known for his encyclopedic knowledge, especially in Chazal literature, including minor Midrashim rarely studied in mainstream Haredi circles.

Chaim Kanievsky studied the Tur and Shulchan Aruch with their commentaries, completing about five pages per day.

Chaim Kanievsky did not give lectures or public talks except on three occasions each year.

Chaim Kanievsky's answers were typically very brief, often just a few words.

Chaim Kanievsky frequently remarked that the time spent writing responses to these questions delayed the writing of his own books.

Chaim Kanievsky presided over numerous educational institutions and charitable organizations, including Ateret Shlomo, Yissachar B'Ohalecha, Kupat Ha'ir, Vaad Harabanim, Lev L'Achim, and the She'erit Yisrael Badatz.

Chaim Kanievsky received hundreds of visitors daily at his home seeking advice and blessings on various matters.

Chaim Kanievsky took great effort to uphold the rulings and positions of the Chazon Ish, including: not relying on the Heter mechirav during the sabbatical year, prohibiting the use of electricity and water supplied through Shabbat desecration, not relying on city Eruvs due to the difficulty of monitoring them from week to week, reading the Book of Esther in Bnei Brak on Shushan Purim out of doubt, and more.

In 2012, Chaim Kanievsky ruled that it is forbidden to possess or use a smartphone without individual permission from a halakhic authority, and that owners are not allowed to sell their phones, but should instead burn them.

In 2016, Chaim Kanievsky declared that medicinal cannabis was kosher for Passover as long as the possession of the cannabis is not in violation of the law of the land.

In February 2020, shortly before the Israeli legislative elections, it was reported by one rabbi that Chaim Kanievsky had stated that the coming of the Messiah was possibly imminent.

At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in Israel and despite the Ministry of Health's directive to close all educational institutions, Chaim Kanievsky instructed that yeshivas and Talmud Torahs remain open, citing that Bitul Torah was more dangerous.

Chaim Kanievsky told his followers that the best ways to defeat the virus were to avoid lashon hara, to strengthen humility, and to place the needs of others before their own.

On October 28,2020, his physician said Chaim Kanievsky had recovered from the virus.

Chaim Kanievsky extensively responded to those who sought his guidance across all Torah topics.

Chaim Kanievsky's responses were typically very brief, often only a few words.