Kav Halacha, the brainchild of a few young kollel yungerleit over a decade ago, is a phone service which provides callers with direct access to skilled Rabbonim who are available to answer their shailos at any time of day or night. The service has received acclaim in numerous frum communities, and has been supported by some of the greatest Halacha authorities around the world. This service was originally based in Eretz Yisroel, primarily serving English speaking people living there who were seeking Rabbonim that spoke their familiar tongue. However, when calls started flowing in from the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and various other countries—Kav Halacha decided to broaden their horizons, offering their service at new shores all across the globe.

Kav Halacha was originally established to fill a void in the ever-growing society of Torah-true English speakers in Eretz Yisroel. At any given time, there are multitudes of Yidden in Eretz Yisroel who are more comfortable speaking their native tongue of English—or don’t speak Hebrew or Yiddish at all. Whether they are American Kollel couples, seminary girls or bachurim from abroad, fresh baalei teshuva studying in the Old City, or long-time citizens who are simply more comfortable with English, they all require Halachic guidance from time to time, which can be a rather daunting task in a new country.

Rabbi Eli Biegeleisen, one of Kav Halacha’s founders, shared the experiences that ultimately led to the establishment of the service. A young kollel yungerman had just arrived in EY from Lakewood with his wife, when they were in need of a Rav for a time-sensitive shailah. “My wife and I were barely settling into our new apartment when a serious shailah arose. I spoke a broken Hebrew at the time, so how was I supposed to communicate the intricate details of my question to the local Rav—a well-known Israeli Posek who didn’t speak a word of English? And besides, even if I would be successful at expressing the question clearly—how would I know if this Rav’s mehalech in psak was in sync with that of my Rav in America?” Rabbi Biegeleisen was able to connect him to a qualified Rav, and the seed was planted.

Rabbi Biegeleisen joined forces with his neighbor in Yerushalayim, Rabbi Shaul Sofer (originally from Melbourne, Australia), and together, they started a phone line for shailos with just one Rav. But a mere few weeks later, Kav Halacha had developed into a 24-hour line providing foreigners in Eretz Yisroel with access to choshuve English speaking Rabbonim at any given moment. 

As the years went by, it became clear that besides for providing a solution for the great demand for English-speaking Rabbonim, Kav Halacha was solving additional issues as well—ones that surely existed beyond the confines of Eretz Yisroel alone. There are often shailos that arise that require immediate attention—like smack in the middle of a chuppah, for instance—and the neighborhood or personal Rav isn’t always available at that specific moment. Or, suppose a time-sensitive shailah decided to crop up at 3 a.m., when most Rabbonim are fast asleep; what is a Yid supposed to do in a situation like that? 

Furthermore, the onset of the 21st century has seen an explosion in travel amongst members of the frum community. Numerous Yidden have to fly for business on a regular basis—often to places that lack even the slightest traces of Jewish life. The amount of Yidden who travel for leisure has also seen a significant uptick in recent years. Shailos can arise any number of times throughout a single trip—often at a time when the family Rav is unavailable, especially when he’s in a completely different time zone.

In addition to all of this, there are many scenarios where people avoid asking Halacha shailos simply because they are uncomfortable, or they just don’t know who to turn to. These cases often involve mental health, fertility, family life and medical issues. Recognizing the need for training and yedios in the various factors that can affect such shailos, Kav Halacha began to offer its Rabbonim opportunities to gain proficiency in the proper methods for handling these issues. Senior Poskim and professionals—well-versed in the fields of medicine, mental health, fertility, and other major issues—have graciously shared their expertise, developing Kav Halacha into a key resource for training Rabbonim.  

A reliable Halacha hotline like Kav Halacha remedies all of these issues. It provides callers with timely responses for important questions no matter where, no matter when. It was for this purpose that the founders of this fundamental service decided to take what they started in Eretz Yisroel and share it with the world.

“It is important to note,” stresses Rabbi Shimon Sofer, Kav Halacha’s Executive Director, “that Kav Halacha’s goal is not to supersede the need for a personal Rav. Their primary mission is to provide solutions when calling your Rav is not an option at that specific time.” In fact, Kav Halacha’s Rabbonim are adept at detecting the nature of a caller; if they feel that it would be beneficial for him to reach out to his own Rav, they would instruct him to do so. They have actually aided many Yidden in the process of finding a local Rav that they can call their own.

With Rabbonim now answering calls in Lakewood, New York, Eretz Yisroel, Los Angeles, London, Melbourne and Johannesburg, there’s practically no time frame that a shailah cannot be asked. Kav Halacha’s newly established worldwide hotline is staffed by dozens of Poskim from all around the world, and is now available to provide answers for all who seek Halachic guidance at any time of the day or night, in any location on the world map. (To view a list of Kav Halacha’s Poskim, visit kavhalacha.org.)

The American number for shailos is 732-707-6666; the Israeli number is 0553-200-200; and 020-4538-4538 for callers from the U.K with more on kavhalacha.org.