osteensibly

A four-panel comic. Panel 1: A red-haired man in a suit asks a dark-haired pastor, "Pastor, how can you believe in free will AND an omniscient God?" Panel 2: The smiling pastor replies, "Simple. I believe God sets the outline of the story but affords us some discretion over its particulars." Panel 3: The red-haired man throws his hands up in delight, exclaiming, "That's exactly complex enough for me to not think any harder about it!" Panel 4: The pastor, now grinning, holds up a yellow book titled "Your Best You" and asks, "Can I interest you in my book that makes you feel good about whatever it is that you're already doing?" The man eagerly pulls out a wad of cash and says, "Do you accept wads of cash?" The joke: the pastor is less a theologian than a self-help salesman peddling comforting non-answers for money. Votey (aftercomic): A plain text list reading "SEQUELS:" followed by spoof titles: "Your Best You, Fast"; "Your Best Money You"; "Your Bester You"; "The Science of Your Best You"; "I'm Sorry, But How Did You Not See This Coming: The True Story of an Embezzler"; and "Your Best You, Softcover" — escalating the self-help cash-grab into a franchise that ends in financial crime.