The Catholic Message Board

Found this in a small book store that was going out of business. I had only read quotes and heard one poem by Kipling and thought good time to read something from him. I had never heard of this book, but as I'm using Google to better understand some of the persons, places, and concepts in the book I regularly see "Kim" popping up in the searches.

I had been reading more current books of late and finding myself annoyed. I just started Kim but it's a nice change of pace. I've bought a couple of books by authors who are Catholic, very recently released books and in both instances had to stop reading them. The narrative was too irksome. Using adjectives to describe that just seemed like big-word flexing. Or such a deep psychological dive into a character at the very beginning of the book... before you even care if he or she is a character worth doing that dive for.

Reading Kim it's just so much more enjoyable and smooth-flowing with the mind. You really get a sense of the opening location of the novel, Lahore. It feels both packed with the busy activity of the bazaar and the diversity of people in that area: british, pakistanis, indians.... hindus, muslims, christians, and buddhists.

From the get go you learn that a Tibetan lama is looking for the "River of the Arrow" to wash away all of his sins so as to break from the "Wheel of Things"... the cycle of reincarnation. His piety and faith are beautiful... but it is something to see how different it is for Buddhists and Christians. The Kipling in the novel quickly claims that the story of Simeon in the Bible is taken from Buddhist stories - the differences are pretty stark. This lama needs to find the waters to bath in, believing they are there - but not knowing where to find them. The Christian has a God who seeks the believer out. Offering this type of forgiveness for free.

Not done with the book by a long shot - but it's one of the better reads I've had in awhile.

There's a funny bit of narrative in the book. A young boy (Kim) who looks almost indistinguishable from any young Indian boy - so much so that everyone just assumes he's a crafty young indian lad. He gets captured while sneaking around a camp site of "white soldiers". There is a Church of England pastor who catches him. But this CoE pastor (Bennett) defers judgement on the child to a Roman Catholic priest:

“I want your advice, Father Victor,” said Bennett. “I found this boy in the dark outside the Mess-tent. Ordinarily, I should have chastised him and let him go, because I believe him to be a thief. But it seems he talks English, and he attaches some sort of value to a charm round his neck. I thought perhaps you might help me.”

Between himself and the Roman Catholic Chaplain of the Irish contingent lay, as Bennett believed, an unbridgeable gulf, but it was noticeable that whenever the Church of England dealt with a human problem she was very likely to call in the Church of Rome. Bennett’s official abhorrence of the Scarlet Woman and all her ways was only equalled by his private respect for Father Victor.

The other thing of note.
Kipling has fallen out of favor for some things he said... regarding his views on other races. But in "Kim" it's regularly the "white man" who is getting acrimonious slanders tossed in his direction. Saying how:

Only the devils and the English walk to and fro without reason.

As well as mocking the ways and concerns of the white man. It doesn't bother me one bit... it just makes me think that Kipling was more than willing to take aim at anything he thought worthy of it.