to believe what is of faith, unless he be induced by reasons.
But when a man has the will to believe what is of faith on the
authority of God alone, although he may have reasons in demonstration
of some of them, e.g. of the existence of God, the merit of his faith
is not, for that reason, lost or diminished.

Reply Obj. 2: The reasons which are brought forward in support of
the authority of faith, are not demonstrations which can bring
intellectual vision to the human intellect, wherefore they do not
cease to be unseen. But they remove obstacles to faith, by showing
that what faith proposes is not impossible; wherefore such reasons do
not diminish the merit or the measure of faith. On the other hand,
though demonstrative reasons in support of the preambles of faith
[*The Leonine Edition reads: 'in support of matters of faith which
are however, preambles to the articles of faith, diminish,' etc.],
but not of the articles of faith, diminish the measure of faith,
since they make the thing believed to be seen, yet they do not
diminish the measure of charity, which makes the will ready to
believe them, even if they were unseen; and so the measure of merit
is not diminished.

Reply Obj. 3: Whatever is in opposition to faith, whether it consist
in a man's thoughts, or in outward persecution, increases the merit
of faith, in so far as the will is shown to be more prompt and firm
in believing. Hence the martyrs had more merit of faith, through not
renouncing faith on account of persecution; and even the wise have
greater merit of faith, through not renouncing their faith on account
of the reasons brought forward by philosophers or heretics in
opposition to faith. On the other hand things that are favorable to
faith, do not always diminish the promptness of the will to believe,
and therefore they do not always diminish the merit of faith.
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QUESTION 3

OF THE OUTWARD ACT OF FAITH
(In Two Articles)

We must now consider the outward act, viz. the confession of faith:
under which head there are two points of inquiry:

(1) Whether confession is an act of faith?

(2) Whether confession of faith is necessary for salvation?
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FIRST ARTICLE [II-II, Q. 3, Art. 1]

Whether Confession Is an Act of Faith?

Objection 1: It would seem that confession is not an act of faith.
For the same act does not belong to different virtues. Now confession
belongs to penance of which it is a part