Whether It Is More Meritorious to Love One's Neighbor Than to Love
God?
Objection 1: It would seem that it is more meritorious to love one's
neighbor than to love God. For the more meritorious thing would seem
to be what the Apostle preferred. Now the Apostle preferred the love
of our neighbor to the love of God, according to Rom. 9:3: "I wished
myself to be an anathema from Christ for my brethren." Therefore it
is more meritorious to love one's neighbor than to love God.
Obj. 2: Further, in a certain sense it seems to be less meritorious
to love one's friend, as stated above (A. 7). Now God is our chief
friend, since "He hath first loved us" (1 John 4:10). Therefore it
seems less meritorious to love God.
Obj. 3: Further, whatever is more difficult seems to be more virtuous
and meritorious since "virtue is about that which is difficult and
good" (Ethic. ii, 3). Now it is easier to love God than to love one's
neighbor, both because all things love God naturally, and because
there is nothing unlovable in God, and this cannot be said of one's
neighbor. Therefore it is more meritorious to love one's neighbor
than to love God.
_On the contrary,_ That on account of which a thing is such, is yet
more so. Now the love of one's neighbor is not meritorious, except by
reason of his being loved for God's sake. Therefore the love of God
is more meritorious than the love of our neighbor.
_I answer that,_ This comparison may be taken in two ways. First, by
considering both loves separately: and then, without doubt, the love
of God is the more meritorious, because a reward is due to it for its
own sake, since the ultimate reward is the enjoyment of God, to Whom
the movement of the Divine love tends: hence a reward is promised to
him that loves God (John 14:21): "He that loveth Me, shall be loved
of My Father, and I will . . . manifest Myself to him." Secondly, the
comparison may be understood to be between the love of God alone on
the one side, and the love of one's neighbor for God's sake, on the
other. In this way love of our neighbor includes love of God, while
love of God does not include love of our neighbor. Hence the
comparison will be between perfect love of God, extending also to our
neighbor, and inadequate and imperfect love of God, for "this
commandment we have from God, that he, who loveth God, love also his
brother" (1 John 4:21).
Reply Obj. 1: According to one gloss, the Apostle did not desire
this, viz. to be severed from Christ for his brethren, when he was in
a state of grace, but had formerly desired it when he was in a state
of unbelief, so that we should not imitate him in this respect.
We may also reply, with Chrysostom (De Compunct. i, 8) [*Hom. xvi in
Ep. ad Rom.] that this does not prove the Apostle to have loved his
neighbor more than God, but that he loved God more than himself. For
he wished to be deprived for a time of the Divine fruition which
pertains to love of one self, in order that God might be honored in
his neighbor, which pertains to the love of God.
Reply Obj. 2: A man's love for his friends is sometimes less
meritorious in so far as he loves them for their sake, so as to fall
short of the true reason for the friendship of charity, which is God.
Hence that God be loved for His own sake does not diminish the merit,
but is the entire reason for merit.
Reply Obj. 3: The _good_ has, more than the _difficult,_ to do
with the reason of merit and virtue. Therefore it does not follow that
whatever is more difficult is more meritorious, but only what is more
difficult, and at the same time better.
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