Margot Patterson

About the author: Margot Patterson is a senior writer for the National Catholic Reporter, a weekly, independent, Catholic journal.

The terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, have given rise to questions about whether the nature of Islam breeds terrorism or if rogue Muslims misinterpret the Koran. Some people argue that poverty and the lack of democracy in Muslim nations—not Islam —contributes to acts of terrorism. In fact, many contend that the Koran advocates tolerance and peace. Terrorists who claim to act in accordance with Islam manipulate the Koran's message to achieve domination and power.

President George W. Bush has insisted that the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, [when Islamic terrorists hijacked U.S. planes and crashed them into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon] and the U.S. response to them are not...