I feel more like I can live as you raised me to live than I did before.

I feel more like I can live as you raised me to live than I did before." Yes, she probably was right about that part since our church had some expectations that were difficult for youth to live up to in society. But Islam similar to Christianity? Well, that would be hard to prove to me. It all had caused so much trouble politically and had such strange ideas. However, I was open to learning. What other choice did I have if I wanted a relationship with my daughter?

It took almost a year and a half to accept and support Jodi in the life she had chosen. I saw her so disciplined in her religion, so wanting to serve God and others around her, so strong as she wore the strange clothing with head cover to classes on the campus. And yet, she was still our Jodi who loved us, who loved to talk and be with people, who struggled to keep up with her studies, who wanted to be a nurse-and was doing it. My friends helped me by their acceptance.

I found that just sitting and crying after reading a poem or article or being in Jodi's old room was healing. I placed her in God's hands as I prayed, and no doubt there were many praying for me. I also had to help other members of the family who felt rejected. But the healing was taking place. We were a family who didn't like conflict; we wanted to love and to be accepting. We also wanted to be open to the world around us, so we began to learn about what our daughter had embraced.

Jihad is a word that has become familiar to many non- Muslims because the media has often associated it with terrorist activities. Dr. Jamilah Kolocotronis, an American-born convert to Islam, in her doctoral dissertation, explored this Islamic concept, which came out of the Arabic language, meaning struggle or exertion. In the time of Muhammad, it took on new meaning as this young new religion began its growth. In her book, Islamic Jihad: An Historical Perspective, Dr.

Kolocotronis states: Now it took on the meaning of "struggle in the cause of Allah." After the period of Muhammad, historians began to translate jihad as "holy war," but this definition does not account for the full meaning of the term.

Jihad should always be defined as struggle in the "Cause of Allah," for this definition alone encompasses all the nuances of the term.(1) In this sense, any activity related to Islamic practice may be a struggle such as waking up for the dawn prayer if one is not an early riser.