May we write the name of God?

CJLS teshuvah by Rabbi Kassel Abelson:

Sheelah [Question]: should the different branches of the Conservative movement write out the full word God, or employ the hyphenation G-d in their publications?

Teshuvah [Answer]: The rabbis, basing themselves on Deut. 12:3-4 deduced that it is forbidden to erase the name of God from a written document. Since any paper upon which God's name was written might be discarded and thus "erased", the Rabbis forbade explicitly writing the name of God, except in Holy Books. And provisions were made for the proper disposal of such books. However, it is clear from the Talmud, (Shevuot 35a-b) that the prohibition applies only to seven Biblical names of God and not to other names or attributes of God which may be freely written. The prohibition was later codified by Maimonides (see Mishneh Torah, Yesodei HaTorah 6:1-2).

Shabbeti b. Meir Hakohen states that the prohibition of erasure of the Divine names applies only to the names in Hebrew but not in the vernacular (see Siftei Kohen to Sh. Ar, YD 179:8, and Pithei Teshuvah to YD 276:9). However, Yehiel Michael Epstein, in his Arukh Hashulhan (HM 27:3), opposes the practice of writing the Divine Name even in the vernacular in correspondence. As a result the custom has grown among some extreme ritually strict Jews not to write the word God or any other name of God in full, even in the vernacular. The practice of using circumlocutions or hyphenations in the vernacular is not universal even among the most observant Jews.

Conclusion: The practice of writing in the vernacular the full word God and other names of God has clear precedent and justification in the Halakha. It is therefore permissible, indeed preferable, for our national Conservative organizations to follow this practice.