We hymn only God and His Word
Even if Athena is allegorised and said to be wisdom, let someone establish her real existence and her substance, showing that she subsists in the way this allegory says. And if Athena was once a woman of ancient times and has been honoured because those who wished her name to be sung among men as a goddess handed down mysteries and rites to their subjects, then all the more ought we not to hymn Athena and glorify her as a goddess, since it is not lawful for us even to worship the sun, great as it is, though we praise it.
Celsus, then, says that we seem the more to worship the great God if we hymn both the Sun and Athena; but we know the opposite. For we sing hymns only to the God over all and to His only-begotten, God the Word (compare John 1:1; John 1:18). And we hymn God and His Only-begotten, as do also “sun and moon” and “stars” (Psalm 148:3) and the whole heavenly host (compare Luke 2:13). For all these, being a divine choir, together with the righteous among men, hymn the God over all and His Only-begotten.
We said before that we must not swear by the king among men, or by what is called his fortune. So we need not defend ourselves again against this: “And even if someone commands you to take an oath by a king among men, not even this is anything terrible. For to him have been given the things on earth, and whatever you receive in this life, you receive from him.” But we say that it is by no means true that all things on earth have been given to him, nor do we receive from him whatever we receive in this life. For whatever we receive justly and rightly, we receive from God and His providence: cultivated crops, and bread that “strengthens the heart of man,” and the gentle vine, and wine that “gladdens the heart of man” (Psalm 104:15). The fruit of the olive too we have from the providence of God, “to make the face shine with oil” (Psalm 104:15).
Greek
Ἵνα δὲ καὶ τροπολογῆται καὶ λέγηται φρόνησις εἶναι ἡ Ἀθηνᾶ, παραστησάτω τις αὐτῆς τὴν ὑπόστασιν καὶ τὴν οὐσίαν, ὡς ὑφεστηκυίας κατὰ τὴν τροπολογίαν ταύτην. εἰ δὲ καὶ ἀρχαία τις γενομένη ἄνθρωπος ἡ Ἀθηνᾶ τετίμηται, παραδόντων τοῖς ὑποχειρίοις μυστήρια καὶ τελετὰς τῶν βουληθέντων αὐτῆς τὸ ὄνομα παρὰ ἀνθρώποις ὡς θεοῦ ᾄδεσθαι, πολλῷ μᾶλλον οὐ χρὴ ὑμνῆσαι καὶ ὡς θεὸν δοξάσαι τὴν Ἀθηνᾶν, εἴ γε οὐδὲ τὸν τηλικοῦτον ἥλιον προσκυνεῖν ἡμῖν θέμις, κἂν εὐφημῶμεν αὐτόν. Κέλσος μὲν οὖν φησι μᾶλλον ἡμᾶς σέβειν δοκεῖν τὸν μέγαν θεὸν, ἂν καὶ Ἥλιον καὶ Ἀθηνᾶν ὑμνῶμεν, ἡμεῖς δὲ τὸ ἐναντίον ἴσμεν. ὕμνους γὰρ εἰς μόνον τὸν ἐπὶ πᾶσι λέγομεν θεὸν καὶ τὸν μονογενῆ αὐτοῦ θεὸν λόγον. καὶ ὑμνοῦμέν γε θεὸν καὶ τὸν μονογενῆ αὐτοῦ ὡς καὶ „ἥλιος καὶ σελήνη“ καὶ „ἄστρα“ καὶ πᾶσα ἡ οὐρανία στρατιά. ὑμνοῦσι γὰρ πάντες οὗτοι, θεῖος ὄντες χορὸς, μετὰ τῶν ἐν ἀνθρώποις δικαίων τὸν ἐπὶ πᾶσι θεὸν καὶ τὸν μονογενῆ αὐτοῦ. προείπομεν μὲν οὖν μὴ δεῖν ὀμνύναι τὸν ἐν ἀνθρώποις βασιλέα ἢ τὴν ὀνομαζομένην τύχην αὐτοῦ. διὸ οὐκ ἀναγκαῖον ἡμᾶς πάλιν ἀπολογεῖσθαι πρὸς τὸ κἂν ἐν ἀνθρώποις βασιλέα κελεύῃ σέ τις ὁρκωμοτεῖν, οὐδὲ τοῦτο δεινόν. δέδοται γὰρ τούτῳ τὰ ἐπὶ γῆς, καὶ ὅ τι ἂν λαμβάνῃς ἐν τῷ βίῳ, παρὰ τούτου λαμβάνεις. ἡμεῖς δέ φαμεν ὅτι οὐ πάντως δέδοται τούτῳ τὰ ἐπὶ γῆς ὅλα, οὐδ᾿ ὅ τι ἂν λαμβάνωμεν ἐν τῷ βίῳ, παρὰ τούτου λαμβάνομεν. δικαίως γὰρ καὶ καλῶς λαμβάνοντες, ἀπὸ τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ τῆς προνοίας αὐτοῦ λαμβάνομεν, οἷον ἡμέρους καρποὺς καὶ ἄρτον, στηρίζοντα „καρδίαν ἀνθρώπου,“ καὶ τὴν προσηνῆ ἄμπελον καὶ οἶνον, εὐφραίνοντα „καρδίαν ἀνθρώπου.“ ἀλλὰ καὶ τοὺς τῆς ἐλαίας καρποὺς ἀπὸ τῆς προνοίας ἔχομεν τοῦ θεοῦ „τοῦ ἱλαρῦναι πρόσωπον ἐν ἐλαίῳ.“