The terrorist attacks on September 11th has shaken all of America and has left us in tears for the loss of innocent lives, but this event is just a prelude to the escalation of Islamic terror in the United States. Islam is a religion which today is the cause of great controversy within our society. Many people refer to Islam as an extremist religion that breeds terrorism, even though the teachings of the religion are precisely the opposite. This is a significant issue that contemporary Islam faces because it must endure the disgrace that has been placed upon the Muslim community. Islam is a religion that means "peace."
             As defined by Merriam Webster dictionary online the term Jihad means "a holy war waged on behalf of Islam as a religious duty." Most of the time when an individual hears the term Jihad instantaneously they think of terrorism because of the way the media portrayed September 11th. According to Islamic scholars, Jihad does not mean holy war, it really means; "to try one's utmost to control one's own bad desires and intentions." Jihad is concerned with proving what is right and removing what is wrong or evil. This is known as Maruf and Munkar. Even though to achieve this one is granted to use any means necessary, however it does not allow one to commit a sin by taking the lives of innocent people. Despite this reasoning the use of Jihad to justify the acts of terror is still occurring today. In the Quran, God has said: "God does not forbid you from showing kindness and dealing justly with those who have not fought you about religion and have not driven you out of your homes. God loves just dealers." (Quran, 60:8). This shows the strictness and the intolerance against, the killing of innocent lives, in Islam.
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