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the reasonableness of our departure from the things mentioned has been demonstrated; for it is not holy nor pious, not only to apply the venerable name of God and the highest honor to evil spirits, but not even to attribute the royal dignity of one among men to robbers and burglars. 4.10.6 Therefore we, having been taught to worship only the God who is over all and to honor as is fitting both the God-beloved and blessed powers around him, we bring to them nothing earthly and dead nor gore and blood nor anything of corruptible and material substance; but with a mind purified from all evil, and with a body clothed in the adornment from purity and temperance, which is more splendid than any robe, and with right and God-befitting doctrines, and in addition to all these things with a genuine disposition we pray to guard the piety delivered by our Savior even unto death. 4.10.7 But now that these things have been articulated beforehand by us, it is time to proceed also to the proofs of what has been said. And first of all it is reasonable to go through the arguments by which the aforementioned author, in his work entitled "On Abstinence from Animal Foods," says that one ought to offer nothing earthly, neither as incense nor as sacrifice, either to the God over all or to the divine powers after him; for such things are alien to fitting piety. 4.11.1

12. THAT ONE OUGHT NEITHER TO OFFER AS INCENSE NOR TO SACRIFICE ANYTHING FROM THE EARTH TO THE GOD OVER ALL

“To the God who is over all, as a certain wise man said, one must offer nothing sensible, neither burning it as incense nor dedicating it; for there is nothing material that is not immediately unclean to the immaterial. Wherefore not even vocal speech is proper to him, nor internal speech, when it has been defiled by a passion of the soul, but let us worship him through pure silence and pure thoughts about him. It is necessary, therefore, that having been joined and made like to him we should offer our own spiritual ascent as a sacred sacrifice to God, which is itself both a hymn and our salvation. This sacrifice, then, is performed in the impassibility of the soul and the contemplation of God.”

13. THAT IT IS NOT FITTING TO SACRIFICE OR OFFER AS INCENSE ANYTHING FROM THE EARTH EVEN TO THE DIVINE POWERS

“But to his offspring, that is, to the intelligible gods, we must now add the hymnody that comes from reason. For the sacrifice to each is a first-fruit of the things he has given and through which he nourishes and holds our being in existence. As therefore a farmer offers first-fruits of his sheaves and fruits, so let us offer to them as first-fruits our good thoughts about them, giving thanks for the contemplation of them which they have given to us, and because through the sight of themselves they truly nourish us, being present with us and appearing and shining upon our salvation.” So says this man. And kindred and related things to this about the first and great God, that celebrated Apollonius of Tyana himself is said to write the following in his work "On Sacrifices":

14. FURTHER CONCERNING THAT ONE OUGHT NOT TO OFFER ANYTHING FROM THE EARTH

TO THE GOD OVER ALL

“In this way, then, I think, one might best pay the fitting reverence to the divine, and he alone of men, more than any other, find him gracious and well-disposed, if to God, whom we indeed called first, who is both one and separate from all things,

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ἡμετέρας ἐκ τῶν δηλουμένων ἀναχωρήσεως τὸ εὔλογον ἀποδεδόσθαι· μὴ γὰρ εἶναι ὅσιον μηδ' εὐσεβές, μὴ ὅτι τὴν τοῦ θεοῦ σεβάσμιον προσηγορίαν καὶ τὴν ἀνωτάτω τιμὴν ἐπὶ τὰ πονηρὰ πνεύματα καταβάλλειν, ἀλλὰ μηδὲ τοῦ παρ' ἀνθρώποις τὴν βασίλειον ἐπιειμένου ἀξίαν λῃσταῖς καὶ τοιχωρύχοις περιτιθέναι. 4.10.6 ὅθεν ἡμεῖς μόνον τὸν ἐπὶ πάντων σέβειν δεδιδαγμένοι θεὸν τιμᾶν τε κατὰ τὸ προσῆκον καὶ τὰς ἀμφ' αὐτὸν θεοφιλεῖς τε καὶ μακαρίας δυνάμεις, οὐδὲν μὲν γεῶδες καὶ νεκρὸν οὐδὲ λύθρους καὶ αἵματα οὐδέ τι τῆς φθαρτῆς καὶ ὑλικῆς οὐσίας ἐπαγόμεθα· νῷ δὲ πάσης κεκαθαρμένῳ κακίας καὶ σώματι τὸν ἐξ ἁγνείας καὶ σωφροσύνης κόσμον πάσης λαμπρότερον ὄντα στολῆς περιβεβλημένῳ δόγμασί τε ὀρθοῖς καὶ θεοπρεπέσι καὶ ἐπὶ πᾶσι τούτοις διαθέσει γνησίᾳ τὴν ὑπὸ τοῦ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν παραδοθεῖσαν εὐσέβειαν μέχρι καὶ θανά4.10.7 του φυλάττειν εὐχόμεθα. ἀλλὰ γὰρ τούτων ἡμῖν προδιηρθρωμένων ὥρα καὶ ἐπὶ τὰς ἀποδείξεις τῶν εἰρημένων χωρεῖν. πρῶτα δὲ πάντων διελθεῖν εὔλογον δι' ὧν ὁ προειρημένος συγγραφεὺς ἐν οἷς ἐπέγραψεν «Περὶ τῆς τῶν ἐμψύχων ἀποχῆς» μὴ χρῆναί φησι μήτε τῷ ἐπὶ πάντων θεῷ μήτε ταῖς μετ' αὐτὸν θείαις δυνάμεσιν γεῶδες μηδὲν μήτε θυμιᾶν μήτε θύειν· ἀλλότρια γὰρ τὰ τοιαῦτα ἢ κατὰ τὴν ἐμπρέπουσαν εὐσέβειαν. 4.11.1

ιβʹ. ΟΤΙ ΟΥ∆ΕΝ ΤΩΝ ΑΠΟ ΓΗΣ ΧΡΗ ΤΩΙ ΕΠΙ ΠΑΝΤΩΝ ΘΕΩΙ ΟΥΤΕ

ΘΥΜΙΑΝ ΟΥΤΕ ΘΥΕΙΝ «Θεῷ μὲν τῷ ἐπὶ πᾶσιν, ὥς τις ἀνὴρ σοφὸς ἔφη, μηδὲν τῶν αἰσθητῶν μήτε θυμιῶντες μήτ' ἐπονομάζοντες· οὐδὲν γὰρ ἔνυλον ὃ μὴ τῷ ἀΰλῳ εὐθύς ἐστιν ἀκάθαρτον. διὸ οὐδὲ λόγος τούτῳ ὁ κατὰ φωνὴν οἰκεῖος οὐδ' ὁ ἔνδον, ὅταν πάθει ψυχῆς ᾖ μεμολυσμένος, διὰ δὲ σιγῆς καθαρᾶς καὶ τῶν περὶ αὐτοῦ καθαρῶν ἐννοιῶν θρησκεύσωμεν αὐτόν. δεῖ ἄρα συναφθέντας καὶ ὁμοιωθέντας αὐτῷ τὴν αὑτῶν ἀναγωγὴν θυσίαν ἱερὰν προσάγειν τῷ θεῷ, τὴν αὐτὴν δὲ καὶ ὕμνον οὖσαν καὶ ἡμῶν σωτηρίαν. ἐν ἀπαθείᾳ ἄρα τῆς ψυχῆς, τοῦ δὲ θεοῦ θεωρίᾳ ἡ θυσία αὕτη τελεῖται.»

ιγʹ. ΟΤΙ ΟΥ∆Ε ΤΑΙΣ ΘΕΙΑΙΣ ∆ΥΝΑΜΕΣΙ ΤΩΝ ΑΠΟ ΓΗΣ ΤΙ ΘΥΕΙΝ Η ΘΥΜΙΑΝ ΠΡΟΣΗΚΕΙ

«Τοῖς δὲ αὐτοῦ ἐκγόνοις, νοητοῖς δὲ θεοῖς ἤδη καὶ τὴν ἐκ τοῦ λόγου ὑμνῳδίαν προσθετέον. ἀπαρχὴ γὰρ ἑκάστῳ, ὧν δέδωκεν, ἡ θυσία καὶ δι' ὧν ἡμῶν τρέφει καὶ εἰς τὸ εἶναι συνέχει τὴν οὐσίαν. ὡς οὖν γεωργὸς δραγμάτων ἀπάρχεται καὶ τῶν ἀκροδρύων, οὕτως ἡμεῖς ἀπαρξώμεθα αὐτοῖς ἐννοιῶν τῶν περὶ αὐτῶν καλῶν, εὐχαριστοῦντες ὧν ἡμῖν δεδώκασι τὴν θεωρίαν καὶ ὅτι ἡμᾶς διὰ τῆς αὐτῶν θέας ἀληθινῶς τρέφουσιν, συνόντες καὶ φαινόμενοι καὶ τῇ ἡμετέρᾳ σωτηρίᾳ ἐπιλάμποντες.» Ταῦτα μὲν οὖν οὗτος. ἀδελφὰ δὲ αὐτῷ καὶ συγγενῆ περὶ τοῦ πρώτου καὶ μεγάλου θεοῦ ἐν τῷ Περὶ θυσιῶν ὁ παρὰ τοῖς πολλοῖς ᾀδόμενος αὐτὸς ἐκεῖνος ὁ Τυανεὺς Ἀπολλώνιος τάδε γράφειν λέγεται·

ιδʹ. ΕΤΙ ΠΕΡΙ ΤΟΥ ΜΗ ΧΡΗΝΑΙ ΤΩΙ ΕΠΙ ΠΑΝΤΩΝ ΘΕΩΙ ΤΩΝ ΑΠΟ ΓΗΣ ΤΙ

ΠΡΟΣΦΕΡΕΙΝ «Οὕτως τοίνυν μάλιστα ἄν τις, οἶμαι, τὴν προσήκουσαν ἐπιμέλειαν ποιοῖτο τοῦ θείου τυγχάνοι τε αὐτόθεν ἵλεώ τε καὶ εὐμενοῦς αὐτοῦ παρ' ὅντινα οὖν μόνος ἀνθρώπων, εἰ θεῷ μέν, ὃν δὴ πρῶτον ἔφαμεν, ἑνί τε ὄντι καὶ κεχωρισμένῳ πάντων,