What happens when financial contracts contain religious statements? Financial prospectuses and contractual documentation of Islamic bonds often refer to sacred principles in unambiguous terms. We show that the use of religious references in these contracts is priced by investors. In general, religious priming leads to a reduction in the yield paid by issuers. The effect is sizeable and exists after controlling for diverse confounding drivers. It is not limited to debt value but spreads to equity value. It also varies across bond’s risk and primarily benefits less risky issuances. At the same time, priming excessively is sanctioned by investors. Securing investors’ attention early, building on a diverse religious rhetoric, and selecting rare religious words reinforce the effect. Additional tests consistently confirm the robustness of the findings.