ople believed him to act honestly."

Reply Obj. 1: Neither in the Tabernacle or Temple of the Old Law, nor
again now in the Church are images set up that the worship of latria
may be paid to them, but for the purpose of signification, in order
that belief in the excellence of angels and saints may be impressed
and confirmed in the mind of man. It is different with the image of
Christ, to which latria is due on account of His Divinity, as we
shall state in the Third Part (Q. 25, A. 3).

The Replies to the Second and Third Objections are evident from what
has been said above.
_______________________

THIRD ARTICLE [II-II, Q. 94, Art. 3]

Whether Idolatry Is the Gravest of Sins?

Objection 1: It would seem that idolatry is not the gravest of sins.
The worst is opposed to the best (Ethic. viii, 10). But interior
worship, which consists of faith, hope and charity, is better than
external worship. Therefore unbelief, despair and hatred of God,
which are opposed to internal worship, are graver sins than idolatry,
which is opposed to external worship.

Obj. 2: Further, the more a sin is against God the more grievous it
is. Now, seemingly, a man acts more directly against God by
blaspheming, or denying the faith, than by giving God's worship to
another, which pertains to idolatry. Therefore blasphemy and denial
of the faith are more grievous sins than idolatry.

Obj. 3: Further, it seems that lesser evils are punished with greater
evils. But the sin of idolatry was punished with the sin against
nature, as stated in Rom. 1:26. Therefore the sin against nature is a
graver sin than idolatry.

Obj. 4: Further, Augustine says (Contra Faust. xx, 5): "Neither do we
say that you," viz. the Manichees, "are pagans, or a sect of pagans,
but that you bear a certain likeness to them since you worship many
gods: and yet you are much worse than they are, for they worship
things that exist, but should not be worshiped as gods, whereas you
worship things that exist not at all." Therefore the vice of
heretical depravity is more grievous than idolatry.

Obj. 5: Further, a gloss of Jerome on Gal. 4:9, "How turn you again
to the weak and needy elements?" says: "The observance of the Law, to
which they were then addicted, was a sin almost equal to the worship
of idols, to which they had been given before their conversion."
Therefore idolatry is not the most grievous sin.

_On the contrary,_ A gloss on the saying of Lev. 15:25, about the