I am sure every Oblate remembers hearing the phrase “couper court” at some point during the days of formation. The phrase is French and literally means to cut short. It was used by the Good Mother Mary de Sales Chappius and passed on to the founder of the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales, Blessed Louis Brisson.
In an instruction to the early Oblates on October 6, 1895, Father Brisson said:
“Let’s make some good resolutions on this matter of charity. It’s difficult to practice I know. Each of us has our way of seeing things, of thinking, of judging… This person or that one can really annoy us. Meetings with some people just set us off! We have certain natural antipathies. The way some people do things just exhausts us. They are a stone along the path. They scandalize us and I know I can’t excuse myself from making such observations, but I want to guard my heart and so I pray: ‘My God, I don’t want to continue to focus on this stuff. I want to nip it in the bud (couper court). It will cost me I know, but I do it for you.’” (Tillburg Edition of the Works of Father Brisson)
Father Brisson’s comments and his suggested prayer make good psychological sense not to mention spiritual sense. We can’t pretend not to see what we see. We can’t pretend to be attracted to something or someone for whom there is a certain natural antipathy. We can decide for how long we will invite these feelings, natural as they may be, to occupy space in our hearts, and minds and how much we allow them to be the controlling force in our day. Yes. To learn to nip it in the bud (couper court) is sound advice for anyone who does not want to be trapped by thoughts and feelings that ultimately can ruin the day and indeed many days to come.
Father David Whalen, OSFS
Priest-Assistant, St. Pius X Parish
Toledo, OH
