ABSTRACT
Chapter 3 explores the factors that contributed to the commissioning of a Qur’an commentary by the Turkish parliament in 1925, which led to Elmalılı’s writing Hak Dîni. This chapter explores the different attitudes towards the Qur’an, Qur’anic interpretation, and religious authority that were expressed in the Qur’an debates of the 1920s. The motivations of the various elements of the state for commissioning a new Qur’an commentary are explored in this chapter. It also discusses the contract that was signed between Elmalılı and the Directorate of Religious Affairs once he agreed to take on the commission to write a Qur’an commentary. This chapter also explores the three different recensions of Hak Dîni that are used in this study.
