Islam. The name Islam and the concepts associated with its teachings are found in the Qur'an, which Muslims believe to be the Word of God revealed to the Prophet Muhammad during roughly twenty-two years between 610 and Muhammad's death in 632. The Islamic belief system is not named after a leader or the person who established the faith community. Muhammad is understood to be the human vessel for the revelation. His mission was to receive and transmit the message of Islam and also to live as the embodiment of Islam. The name Islam designates the goal for the believer — entering "the state of submission to God." Understanding of Islamic teachings presupposes use of terminology from within the faith, beginning with the term din, which is generically translated as "religion." The English term may be used to designate any one of several religious traditions, but the Arabic term din means...