Good in the Face of Evil

The novel A Time for Mercy demonstrates the way people can be good to one another even when they are faced with evil. The members of the Good Shepherd church demonstrate this ability to be good when they take in Josie and Kiera. Kiera demonstrates the ability to be good in the face of evil when she carries her baby to term and gives it up for adoption. Atlee demonstrates goodness when he senses that Jake is getting a bad deal in the Smallwood case and suggests a move to a different court.

The loving attitude of the members of the Good Shepherd church contrasts sharply with the judgmental attitude of the members of the Presbyterian church that Jake attends. The morning after Stuart was killed, Jake notes that all the discussion in his Sunday school class was very damning: “His...