Pope puts whingers on notice as he forbids complaining

WHINGERS, whiners and moaners have been put on notice by Pope Francis, who has stuck a big sign to the front door of his Vatican apartment that reads: “Complaining is forbidden.”

The notice, in large white letters on a red background, has appeared on the door that leads to the pontiff’s private rooms in Casa Santa Marta, the modest residence where he lives in the shadow of St Peter’s Basilica.

The good-humoured message appears to be aimed at cardinals, priests and members of his staff who may be more inclined to bring problems than solutions to the leader of the world’s 1.2 billion Catholics.

Unlike his predecessors, who traditionally fled the torrid summer heat of Rome for the cooler environs of Castel Gandolfo, a papal residence in the Alban Hills outside the capital, Pope Francis eschews holidays and resolutely works through July and August.

The sign says that “offenders are subject to a syndrome of victimhood

‘Focus on your own potential and not on your limits. So stop complaining and act to change your life’

that reduces their sense of humour and capacity to solve problems”.

For anyone caught whining in front of children – an unlikely scenario in the confines of the Vatican, where the population consists mostly of prelates, nuns and Swiss Guards – “sanctions will be doubled”.

The notice concludes: “To become the best of yourself, you must focus on your own potential and not on your limits.

“So stop complaining and act to change your life for the better.”

The sign was a gift from Salvo Noé, an Italian psychologist and author of self-help books, whom the Pope met last month at one of his weekly audiences in St Peter’s Square.

He promised that he would post it outside his apartment, which doubles as his private office.

Famous for his direct language, the Pope has in the past urged Catholics to have a positive outlook, whatever the tribulations they may be facing.

A few months after he was elected in 2013, Pope Francis told a gathering of faithful: “Sometimes there are melancholic Christians with faces like pickled peppers, such long faces, rather than being joyful for the beautiful life they have.”