"Wē sǣdon ēow and ġȳt secgað þæt wē ne magon ealle ðās race ēow be endebyrdnysse secgan, for ðan ðe sēo bōc is swīðe miċel, and hire dīgele andġyt is ofer ūre mǣðe tō smēaġenne."
"We told you before and we'll tell you again that we cannot tell you this whole story from beginning to end. For this book is very large, and its hidden meaning is beyond your ability to ponder."
When I was in high school they decided to show us some film about the cathedral at Chartres. Being 14-18 years old most of us had not yet developed that finally honed aesthetic sense which some of us later could call our own. I know I hadn't. When the priest showing us the film told us what the film was about, there was a rather loud collective groan. The priest -- let's just call him Father Aelfric -- regarded us in silence for a moment. At length he said, not quite sotto voce:
"Pearls before swine."
"Pearls before swine."
I can't speak for anyone else, but I knew I had just been insulted.
