A Secret History of Christianity: Jesus, the Last Inkling, and the Evolution of Consciousness

Vernon's monograph presents a provocative reinterpretation of Christianity through the lens of consciousness evolution, positioning Jesus as a pivotal figure who catalyzed a transformation in human awareness rather than founding a traditional religion. Drawing on Owen Barfield's theories of consciousness development and the Inkling tradition more broadly, Vernon argues that Christianity's true significance lies not in its doctrinal claims or institutional forms but in its role as a vehicle for expanding human perception of the divine.

The work challenges conventional religious historiography by proposing that early Christianity represented a shift from participatory consciousness, where humans experienced themselves as embedded within a divinely animated cosmos, to a more individuated awareness that paradoxically enables deeper spiritual insight. Vernon contends that Jesus exemplified and transmitted this new mode of consciousness, which subsequent Christian mystical traditions have preserved despite institutional Christianity's tendency toward dogmatic ossification.

Central to Vernon's thesis is the claim that modernity's disenchantment represents not a loss of the sacred but a necessary stage in consciousness evolution. He argues against both traditional theists who seek to preserve premodern religious worldviews and secular materialists who dismiss spiritual experience entirely. Instead, Vernon advocates for what he terms a "second naivete" that integrates critical rationality with renewed openness to transcendent experience.

The author employs an interdisciplinary methodology, weaving together historical analysis, depth psychology, anthroposophy, and literary criticism. His engagement with the Inklings, particularly Barfield's influence on C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien, serves to legitimate his consciousness-centered reading of Christian history within a respected intellectual tradition. Vernon traces how certain strands of Christian mysticism, from the Desert Fathers through Meister Eckhart to contemporary contemplatives, have maintained awareness of Christianity's consciousness-transforming potential.

The work's significance for the God debate lies in its attempt to transcend the binary opposition between belief and unbelief by reframing the question of God in terms of modes of consciousness rather than propositional claims. Vernon suggests that experiencing the divine requires cultivating particular capacities of awareness rather than intellectual assent to theological doctrines. This approach offers a potential bridge between religious and secular worldviews while maintaining that genuine spiritual transformation remains possible in late modernity.