Mercy in the Courtroom

In this sacred time of Passover and Easter, my thoughts turn to the subject of mercy. What is mercy? Why is it so important? And, most importantly, is it a fading virtue in America today?

Pope Francis meeting Oreste Tornani.
– Evandro Inetti/ZUMAPRESS.com

Applying these questions in my day to day life as a Social Security claimants' representative, I must say that the presence of mercy in the Social Security courtroom is not what it once was. I recall three Social Security judges at the Cincinnati Office of Disability Adjudication and Review when I practiced in Ohio (two of them are now retired), who were well known for consistently showing mercy from the bench.

These men weren't suckers, mind you. They were just kind. They listened to the disability claimants' stories of physical and mental suffering without moral judgment. They understood that being a judge was not just about dry and objective clinical assessment, but also involved delving into the nuances of a case in hopes of determining how this individual could be helped, not harmed. I have no idea if any of these men were "spiritual" in the traditional sense of the word (actually, I heard that one had once trained to be a Catholic priest). Nonetheless, I strongly suspect that each man had an inner sense of the importance of facing human pain with a spirit of kindness and compassion. 

Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines mercy as "kind or forgiving treatment of someone who could be treated harshly"; and, "kindness or help given to people who are in a very bad or desperate situation." How many times have I sat in a Social Security courtroom and observed a judge treating a disability claimant harshly, with total lack of concern or sensitivity to that person's plight? Too many times. 


In fairness, I think that Social Security judges, and Social Security claimants' representatives, get burnt out. Showing compassion to strangers, day after day, year after year, takes energy. It requires a calm and mindful presence in your daily interactions with the public when, perhaps, you didn't sleep well the night before, or you're having your own set of personal or financial problems. It's easy to get tired and cynical. 

Nevertheless, the stress of modern day life in America is no excuse for throwing out the goal of at least trying to be merciful in our day-to-day dealings. In the Old Testament, Micah 6.8 expressly states that the Lord requires that we "love mercy." We should not practice it grudgingly, or out of religious duty. It should be something that we love to do. Why? I suppose the answer is simple: because it makes us feel good, and it makes other people feel good.

It's the way that human beings are meant to behave.