"TIPPETT: So, you know, one thing that is very striking that I didn't expect is that this book, your book about death, it's really a very religious book. TERKEL: Religious book? TIPPETT: Yes. I mean, there's a lot of religion in it, all the way through it. I mean, did you know that, that those themes would be so prominent when you started it? TERKEL: Well, I knew religion would play a role when I — to be fair, I happen to be an agnostic. You know what an agnostic is, don't you? TIPPETT: Oh, yeah. TERKEL: A cowardly atheist. And I'm an agnostic. ... You asked about the afterlife. Well, I can't take bets on it. Who's going to take my bet, you know? I, myself, don't believe in any afterlife. I do believe in this life, and what you do in this life is what it's all about."