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Stitching G-d’s name(s)

tetragrammaton
G-d’s name

Some participants have expressed concern about the propriety of stitching the Tetragrammaton or others of God’s names.

This response comes from Izzy Pludwinski, our resident Sofer STaM:
“The prohibition is against erasing God’s name – not in writing it. . . There is no problem in writing God’s name if done with a purpose. When one writes God’s name when writing STaM one says “This Name I am writing for the sanctity of the Divine Name (Shem Hashem).
שם זה אני כותב לשם קדושת השם
In STaM if one does not say it then the object ( mezuza, tfillin or Sefer Torah) would be invalid. In stitching there is no object to invalidate, but one should have the proper intention.”

The halachic prohibition is against destroying holy objects that contain any of God’s specified names. That is the reason for consigning such items to a geniza, and ultimately burial in sanctified ground.

Stitchers who want to do a 4-verse section that does not contain any sacred names can make that request in their registration application.