Two Reasons Why Erasing Hashem’s Name is Permitted
The Medrash Rabbah (11:7) states: “Shalom is so great that Hashem says that His holy name should be erased in order to create peace between a man and his wife.” The Maharal zt”l (Sefer Nesivos Olam, Chelek 2, 1) explains that, as Chazal say, Hashem’s name is “Shalom”. Thus, erasing His holy name is a means of spreading His name of Shalom. Therefore, it is permitted to erase His name in order to spread the ideal of Shalom.
Sefarim Hakedoshim add that it is permitted to erase His name for the sake of peace because erasing His name does not “push away the Shechinah”. On the contrary, doing so brings the Shechinah into the home, as Chazal say (Sotah 17A) that if a husband and wife live in peace, the Shechinah is amongst them.
Helping at Home:
Rav Shimshon Aharon Polinsky zt”l was known as the Tepliker Rov and was a leading Posek in Yerushalaim. He once walked into his bais medrash a few days before Pesach and saw that it was full of young men sitting and learning. He immediately ascended the bimah and announced, “I have a long list of almanos who need help preparing for yomtov. Who wants to help them?” The young men jumped up and offered to help. They all wanted a share in this great mitzvah. They all lined up, and the Rov gave each of them a folded paper with the name and address of a woman in need of help. When they opened the papers, each one was shocked to see his own address. The Rov was hinting that, of course, it is a big mitzvah to help a widow, but one also must help his own wife.
One Who Helps Others Helps Himself:
When one helps others, he is also helping himself. The Sefas Emes discerns this idea from the pasuk (Devarim 22:4) that states: “You shall surely pick him up with him.” This can be understood to mean that when one picks up his friend, he picks himself up along with him. This is as Chazal say (Rus Rabbah 5:9): “A poor man does more for a householder than the householder does for him.”
