"Not everything that is more difficult is more meritorious"

This quote by Thomas Aquinas is a pointer that not all difficult tasks are always more valuable or worthy of praise. Aquinas is recommending that trouble alone does not equate to benefit. He is stressing that it is important to consider the context and purpose of a task before determining its worth. For instance, an uphill struggle that is not useful to society or does not have a favorable outcome is not necessarily more meritorious than a much easier job that has a favorable result. Aquinas is encouraging us to believe seriously about the tasks we carry out and to consider the effect they have on our lives and the lives of others. He is reminding us that trouble does not always correspond to benefit which it is important to think about the function and outcome of a job before determining its worth.