Pierre Montallier: The Works of Mercy, c. 1680

Mercy (Middle English, from Anglo-French merci, from Medieval Latin merced-, merces, from Latin, "price paid, wages", from merc-, merx "merchandise") can refer both to compassionate behaviour on the part of those in power (e.g. mercy shown by a judge toward a convict) or on the part of a humanitarian third party (e.g. a mission of mercy aiming to treat war victims). Mercy is a term used to describe the leniency or compassion shown by one person to another, or a request from one person to another to be shown such leniency or compassion. One of the basic virtues of chivalry and Christian ethics, it is also related to concepts of justice and morality in behaviour between people. In India, compassion is known as karuna. Mercy can refer to: Mercy, a term used to describe the leniency or compassion shown by one person to another, or a request from one person to another to be shown such leniency or compassion Mercy is also the name or part of the name of several communes in France... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (2536x2099, 442 KB) Description: Title: de: Die Werke der Barmherzigkeit Technique: de: Öl auf Leinwand Dimensions: de: 45 × 53 cm Country of origin: de: Frankreich Current location (city): de: St. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (2536x2099, 442 KB) Description: Title: de: Die Werke der Barmherzigkeit Technique: de: Öl auf Leinwand Dimensions: de: 45 × 53 cm Country of origin: de: Frankreich Current location (city): de: St. ... Middle English is the name given by historical linguistics to the diverse forms of the English language spoken between the Norman invasion of 1066 and the mid-to-late 15th century, when the Chancery Standard, a form of London-based English, began to become widespread, a process aided by the... Anglo-French is a term that may be used in several contexts: Nationality, eg. ... Medieval Latin was the form of Latin used in the Middle Ages, primarily as a medium of scholarly exchange and as the liturgical language of the medieval Roman Catholic Church, but also as a language of science, literature, law, and administration. ... For other uses, see Latin (disambiguation). ... It has been suggested that Idiot compassion be merged into this article or section. ... Bors Dilemma - he chooses to save a maiden rather than his brother Lionel Chivalry[1] is a term related to the medieval institution of knighthood. ... For other uses, see Christian (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Ethics (disambiguation). ... This article is about the concept of justice. ... Morality (from the Latin manner, character, proper behaviour) has three principal meanings. ... For the army colonel see Colonel Karuna. ...

In a legal sense, a defendant having been found guilty of a capital crime may ask for clemency from being executed. (A famous literary example is from The Merchant of Venice when Portia asks Shylock to show mercy. The quality of mercy is not strained, she tells him.) Capital punishment, or the death penalty, is the execution of a convicted criminal by the state as punishment for crimes known as capital crimes or capital offences. ... A pardon is the forgiveness of a crime and the penalty associated with it. ... Portia and Shylock (1835) by Thomas Sully The Merchant of Venice is one of William Shakespeares best-known plays, written sometime between 1596 and 1598. ...

A number of organizations (e.g. the Mercy Corps, the Sisters of Mercy and the Temple of Mercy and Charity) use the word "mercy" in their name to describe their work. Mercy Corps logo Mercy Corps is a non-profit organization engaged in humanitarian aid and development activities. ... The Religious Order of the Sisters of Mercy (RSM) is an order of Catholic women founded by Catherine McAuley in Dublin, Ireland in 1831. ... The Temple of Mercy and Charity (Polish: Świątynia Miłosierdzia i Miłości) is a Mariavite cathedral in Płock in central Poland. ...

References

• Ralf van Bühren: Die Werke der Barmherzigkeit in der Kunst des 12.–18. Jahrhunderts. Zum Wandel eines Bildmotivs vor dem Hintergrund neuzeitlicher Rhetorikrezeption (Studien zur Kunstgeschichte, vol. 115), Hildesheim / Zürich / New York: Verlag Georg Olms 1998. ISBN 3-487-10319-2
• Sterling Harwood, "Is Mercy Inherently Unjust?," in Michael J. Gorr and Sterling Harwood, eds., Crime and Punishment: Philosophic Explorations (Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Publishing Co., 2000, formerly Boston, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers, 1996), pp. 464-470.
• Jeffrie G. Murphy, "Mercy and Legal Justice," in Michael J. Gorr and Sterling Harwood, eds., Crime and Punishment: Philosophic Explorations (Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Publishing Co., 2000, formerly Boston, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers, 1996), pp. 454-463.
• Lampert, K.(2005); Traditions of Compassion: From Religious Duty to Social Activism. Palgrave-Macmillan