He's got 2 and a half entire albums of overtly religious songs, frogprince, (Slow Train Coming, Saved, Shot of Love) and a great many other songs on other albums which, though not overtly religious, certainly contain forms of spiritual parables and Biblical references. Almost all of John Wesley Harding, for example, is of that nature...the whole album is about temptation, sin, falling from grace, suffering, judgement, experiencing repentance, and seeing the possibility of redemption. It just isn't stated in overtly religious words. If you remove certain very specific words (God, Jesus, the Lord, Calvary, Pentecost, etc...) then people don't seem to notice that the songs are discussing the same basic moral and spiritual issues that are the main concerns of religion. This has been the case all through Dylan's songwriting, right from the start and to the present day.

It's also the case with Leonard Cohen. All the way through. They are very comparable in that sense, as well as in their mastery of great lyrics.

The main difference being...Dylan writes fast and spontaneously, just when the spirit hits him. Cohen writes slowing, very meticulously, with a longterm objective in mind in each song. That's why Dylan may write a great song in half an hour, while Leonard might do it in 3 years! ;-D Radically different approaches...similarly effective results.