Summary
To me they are like consecutive octaves in the music, only much more frequent. We are told that they are often caused by vowel shifts over time, but I don't believe it. No vowel shift can justify 'home' rhyming with 'come' -- when were these words ever pronounced 'hum' or 'comb'? They are simply evidence of the substandard workmanship of so many of our hymns.
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Extract
Lost in Translation
My interest in ridiculous sacred words began with a Victorian edition of Verdi's 'Requiem', which I met at school. At the unbelievably splendid, and brassy, 'Tuba mirum' we were asked to sing the translation: 'Hark! The trumpet soun...
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