The Diyanet the official face of Islam in Turkey is the Presidency of Religious Affairs a governmental department established in 1924 after the break up of the Ottoman Empire and the abolition of Caliphate In this book Emir Kaya offers an in depth multidisciplinary analysis of this vital institution Focusing on the role of the Diyanet in society Kaya explores the balance the institution has to strike between the Muslim traditions of the Turkish population and the secular creed of the Turkish state By examining the various laws that either bolstered or hindered the Diyanet s budgets and activities Kaya highlights the institutional mindsets of the Diyanet membership He also evaluates its successes and failures as a state department that must consistently operate within the context of the religiosity of Turkish society By situating all of this within the two competing but often complimentary concepts of religion and secularism Kaya offers a book that is important for those researching the interplay of Islam and the state in Turkey and beyond