The chorus acknowledges his arrival, it is not with the hope that they previously showed. They ask him why he would want to stop and help a Jew. As the Samaritan stoops to help, though, the tenor's feeble cry for help becomes a soaring arioso. In the epilogue, the tenor and baritone sing that they now know who their neighbour is. The Cantata Misericordium is considered by many to be an epilogue to the War Requiem.
Some critics feel that it has less of an impact, however, due to the somewhat dull Latin text.
Since the piece was written for an international event, Britten probably felt that English text would be inappropriate.