Z is for Zadok

Zadok the Priest is an anthem, composed by George Frideric Handel for the coronation of King George II in 1727. The work has been sung prior to the anointing of the sovereign at the coronation of every British monarch since its composition and has become recognised as a British patriotic anthem.

It is based on 1 Kings 1:38–40. Lyrics from the anthem are:

Zadok the Priest, and Nathan the Prophet anointed Solomon King.
And all the people rejoiced, and said:
God save the King! Long live the King!
May the King live for ever,
Amen, Alleluia.

(okay, I know that one's not particularly modern. You try and pick one for Z, then...)

Y is for You Got The Love

Disco star Candi Staton recorded You Got The Love back in the 1980s after she decided to ditch her secular music career and to devote herself to the church. Unfortunately, the gospel song was then featured in a direct-to-video documentary about the world's fattest man... it only became famous when The Source remixed the track in 1991. The remixed track's success prompted Staton to reassess her career.

"It was such an inspirational song it allowed me to rethink," she told The Guardian . "People in church used to tell me secular music was the devil's music - but I realised it wasn't."

The song was written by Anthony B. Stephens, Arnecia Michelle Harris, and John Bellamy.

X is for eXodus

Exodus: An Oratorio in Three Parts (2008) is the ninth album by William Shatner, produced in 2008. It is a dramatic biblical reading in which Shatner is accompanied by the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra. It was produced by David Itkin,

In addition to Shatner and the 75 member orchestra, a choral group of 350 singers accompanied the reading of the passages.

W is for The Wanderer

The Wanderer is yet another scripturally-based song for U2, however it was not sung by Bono (although he did write the lyrics). It was the final track from their 1993 album 'Zooropa'. Instead, it featuring country singer Johnny Cash.

Bono explained: "I wrote the lyric based on the book of Ecclesiastes in the Old Testament, which in some translation is called The Preacher. It's a story of intellectual wanderlust. The preacher wants to find out the meaning of life and so he tries a bit of everything. He tries knowledge, educates himself, reads every book, but that doesn't do it. He tries travel, sees every sight, but that doesn't do it. He tries wine, women and song, that doesn't do it. All, he says, is vanity, vanity of vanities, striving after wind. As you read this book you think, 'I can't wait to hear what does do it!' And the most extraordinary line is: 'There is nothing better for a man, than that he should eat and drink, and that he should make his soul enjoy good in his labour.' Love your work. That's what it is. It is good to love what you do. I think there's a lot to that."

V is for AVenged SeVenfold (Chapter Four)

Chapter Four is a song by Heavy Metal band Avenged Sevenfold. The song’s name and lyrics are based on Genesis chapter 4, where the story of Cain killing Abel is told. The band also took their name from that same story (Genesis 4:24).

U is for Until The End Of The World

Many of U2's songs have had a spiritual theme, haven' t they?

Until The End Of The World is sung from the perspective of Judas Iscariot in the Garden of Gethsemane, and describe a fictional conversation between Jesus and Judas. The first verse is about the Last Supper; the second about Judas identifying Jesus with a kiss; the final verse is about Judas' suicide after being overwhelmed with guilt and sadness.

It's the fourth track of their 1991 album 'Achtung Baby'. It was composed by U2, with lyrics by Bono.

T is for Turn, Turn, Turn

Turn! Turn! Turn! (To Everything There Is a Season) was written by Pete Seeger, with lyrics taken from the book of Ecclesiastes (3:1-8). The words were rearranged and paired with Seeger's music to make the song. Seeger included a live version on his 1962 album 'The Bitter And The Sweet' with just voice and guitar.

The Byrds topped the charts with it in 1965 with their version, released as the follow-up to 'Mr Tambourine Man'. The plea for peace and tolerance struck a chord with the American public as the Vietnam War escalated at the time.

S is for Spirit in the Sky

Spirit In The Sky makes several religious references to Jesus in the lyrics, although Norman Greenbaum (who wrote the song) is Jewish. Of course, so was Jesus...

In a 2006 interview with the New York Times, Greenbaum told a reporter he was inspired to write the song after watching someone singing a gospel song on TV. Greenbaum said: "I thought, 'Yeah, I could do that,' knowing nothing about gospel music, so I sat down and wrote my own gospel song. It came easy. I wrote the words in 15 minutes." The resulting sound was an "oddly compelling" combination of gospel and hard rock music

R is for Rivers Of Babylon

Rivers of Babylon is based on Psalm 137:1-4, and details the exile of the Jewish people in 586 BC.

The song was written and recorded by Brent Dowe and Trevor McNaughton of the Jamaican reggae group The Melodians in 1970. It was popularised in Europe by a 1978 cover by Boney M, which was one of the top-ten all-time best-selling singles in the UK.

Q is for Quilt (Coat Of Many Colours)

Coat of Many Colours is a song written and recorded by Dolly Parton. A true story, it tells of how Parton's mother stitched together a coat for her young daughter out of rags given to the family, just like a patchwork quilt. As she sewed, she told her child the biblical story of Joseph and his Coat of Many Colours (from the book of Genesis). When Parton wore the coat, the local kids just made fun of her.

Parton composed the song in 1969, recording it in April 1971. It reached number 4 on the U.S. country singles charts. Parton also admits that this is the favourite of the many songs she has written.