densome than the Old.

Obj. 3: The more one has to do, the more difficult it is. But the New
Law is something added to the Old. For the Old Law forbade perjury,
while the New Law proscribed even swearing: the Old Law forbade a man
to cast off his wife without a bill of divorce, while the New Law
forbade divorce altogether; as is clearly stated in Matt. 5:31,
seqq., according to Augustine's expounding. Therefore the New Law is
more burdensome than the Old.

_On the contrary,_ It is written (Matt. 11:28): "Come to Me, all you
that labor and are burdened": which words are expounded by Hilary
thus: "He calls to Himself all those that labor under the difficulty
of observing the Law, and are burdened with the sins of this world."
And further on He says of the yoke of the Gospel: "For My yoke is
sweet and My burden light." Therefore the New Law is a lighter burden
than the Old.

_I answer that,_ A twofold difficulty may attach to works of virtue
with which the precepts of the Law are concerned. One is on the part
of the outward works, which of themselves are, in a way, difficult
and burdensome. And in this respect the Old Law is a much heavier
burden than the New: since the Old Law by its numerous ceremonies
prescribed many more outward acts than the New Law, which, in the
teaching of Christ and the apostles, added very few precepts to those
of the natural law; although afterwards some were added, through
being instituted by the holy Fathers. Even in these Augustine says
that moderation should be observed, lest good conduct should become a
burden to the faithful. For he says in reply to the queries of
Januarius (Ep. lv) that, "whereas God in His mercy wished religion to
be a free service rendered by the public solemnization of a small
number of most manifest sacraments, certain persons make it a slave's
burden; so much so that the state of the Jews who were subject to the
sacraments of the Law, and not to the presumptuous devices of man,
was more tolerable."

The other difficulty attaches to works of virtue as to interior acts:
for instance, that a virtuous deed be done with promptitude and
pleasure. It is this difficulty that virtue solves: because to act
thus is difficult for a man without virtue: but through virtue it
becomes easy for him. In this respect the precepts of the New Law are
more burdensome than those of the Old; because the New Law prohibits
certain interior movements of the soul, which were not expressly