the-psychology-of-heaven

A four-panel SMBC comic. In the first three panels, a man questions a Catholic priest about the afterlife. The man asks if there is fire in Purgatory; the priest explains, "Canonically, yes. The flames intensify your longing for the presence of the Lord, thus purging you of imperfection." The man confirms that most imperfect people go to Purgatory before Heaven, then realizes aloud: "So... Heaven is overwhelmingly populated by people who spent millenia being tortured by fire because they didn't follow the rules down here?" The priest, stunned, replies, "I... huh." The fourth panel is captioned ELSEWHERE: and shows Heaven, with fluffy clouds and angels. A winged angel asks, "How's your day going, Steve?" Steve, a winged angel holding panpipes, answers with a manic, strained grin: "It's great and everything is great and I love everything about everyone here thanks for asking." Votey: an extreme close-up of Steve's wide-eyed, tense smiling face as he says, "Sometimes I miss the pitchforks." The joke: the trauma of Purgatory leaves Heaven's residents desperately, unconvincingly cheerful.