The Meaning of Pity and Mercy...what is the RIGHT thing to do?

[Jessica Jade]

What would you do?...
As we all know in LOTR...
at the Cracks of Doom in the final moment of truth, where the Shadow raises itself to its most horribly gruesome evil height, Frodo's heart and will falter for one moment and are devoured by the Shadow. His desire to destroy the ring is conquered. The entire quest hangs on a single thread of doom.

Then, from beyond the circles of the world, blown in on wings of mercy, grace comes to pull you back from the pits of Mordor, a grace which was possible only because you had shown pity towards a hideous and miserable creature. --Child of the 7th Age

(note: This quote is from something that Child of 7th Age wrote a previous thread that happens to fit perfectly with this discussion i'm starting.)
I'm sure you all recall from the beginning of LOTR, Gandalf and Frodo's conversation about the pity of Bilbo:
I do not feel any pity for Gollum. He deserves death.
Deserves death? I daresay he does. Many that live deserve death. And some that die deserve life. Can you give that to them? Then do not be too eager to deal out death in the name of justice, fearing for your own safety. Even the wise cannot see all ends.

Indeed, one of the most important and poignant themes in LOTR is the meaning of pity and mercy. Gandalf tells Frodo to show mercy to the ones around him, because he has neither the wisdom nor right to determine who should live and who should die on earth. Frodo takes Gandalf’s advice to heart and makes them part of his actions, and by the end of the story, he has undeniably reached a higher level of understanding. At the end, he knows that it is right to be merciful toward others (seeing that his quest would have been all been in vain if he hadn’t), and, being a perfect example of his acquired maturity, he shows pity to Saruman in the Shire, even though Saruman had every intention to kill him.

And all of that brings me to my point: Do Gandalf’s words ring true in our lives and in our world? Do you believe that humans have not the right to judge who should live and die?
If YOU were in a situation where someone were about to kill you in cold blood out of sheer malice, and you had NO way to escape, what’s the RIGHT thing to do?

Is it right to kill a treacherous, murderous creature, because it would seem safe, just, and many times deserved? OR…Is it right to show them mercy, even if it, as far as you know, leads undoubtedly to your own death, doom, or destruction?
(Mind you, I’m not only talking about murder here. I mean pretty much any situation where you can either be merciful or risk being seriously hurt-that is, hurt physically, mentally, emotionally, etc…)

Should we take Gandalf’s advice to Frodo into our hearts as well? What’s the right thing to do? What would you do?

[ April 21, 2002: Message edited by: Jessica Jade ]