Whether a composer need be religious to compose a religious work is a frequently asked question. It would seem not. Composers see themselves as responsible only for music, not words. This was Thomas Tallis’ and William Byrd’s point when they titled their joint publication of motets in 1575 Cantiones quae ab argumento sacrae vocantur, “Songs which arguably are called sacred”. Their concerns were chords, counterpoint and anomic writing, as they proceeded to demonstrate. Earlier, their predecessor John Taverner had been excused heresy because he was “but a musitian”. A new Stabat Mater by the 65-year-old British composer James Dillon was deeply moving, but the composer claims no love of the Church at all. The Latin poem has an earthy appeal in its rhythmic