John Fernelius describes his upbringing in Redmond as “somewhat redneck, with a cattle ranch and Baptist church.”

This fall, the Central Oregon Community College history major is taking a step to push beyond the familiar, enrolling in the school’s first Jewish studies course.

“Growing up, I was of course aware of (Judaism), but it was never close to being front and center,” said Fernelius, a 28-year-old sophomore. “It’s really astonishing, because the Jewish faith plays such a foundational role in modern Western religion. I’m not religious myself, but I feel I have such a dearth of knowledge on the subject.”

The course, which will launch this fall beside a new Jewish students club, will be taught by Rabbi Johanna Hershenson, who moved to Bend just over a year ago to lead the Temple Beth Tikvah congregation. This won’t be Hershenson’s first time leading a class, as she taught in Wisconsin and was invited by a COCC history professor, Jessica Hammerman, to give a guest lecture in a course on Western civilization last school year.

“She was really adept at dealing with classic questions about Jews, and she wasn’t at all thrown when people asked her about being a woman rabbi, for instance,” Hammerman said.

“We were studying Roman history, and some of my students are religious Christians, and she was asked about whether the Romans or Jews killed Jesus. She was very easygoing with it and was so great at talking about it,” Hammerman said.

Hershenson thinks there’s a lot of interest in Judaism locally, particularly its role in the history of Christianity, but “there’s not a lot of knowledge to make it real.” When she meets people beginning to explore the religion by reading the Hebrew Bible, Hershenson said she often tells them, “I hope you know we no longer sacrifice goats.”

Hershenson anticipates the course being full of non-Jews, reflecting Bend’s demographics, but that she “loves working with raw clay.”

“It’s really fascinating to me to be with people as they realize Jews are more than these people mentioned in the Old Testament,” she said.

The course will focus on Jewish identity as it evolved over the centuries. Hershenson hopes to use the subject as a means to explore how cultural identities take shape more broadly, offering students the ability to reflect on their own backgrounds.

Instead of working with textbooks, students will use primary documents, including the Hebrew Bible, the Talmud and the writings of Maimonides, a Medieval Jewish philosopher.

“We’ll be looking at literature from each time period and trying to learn from the people living then what religious identity meant to them,” Hershenson said.

For those hoping to explore contemporary Jewish identity, COCC’s Jewish students club will launch this fall, offering Jews and non-Jews a venue to discuss the religion.

“Especially in Central Oregon, where there are hardly any Jewish people, it’ll be good to have this space,” said Patricia Givens, a COCC librarian who is leading the club.

Givens said the club will host speakers and attend events, including, she hopes, the annual Portland Jewish Film Festival.

Twenty-five students have signed up, most of whom are non-Jewish.

“It helps to build bridges and increase understanding,” she said. “I think it’s important and great that people are comfortable participating in events with a Jewish theme.”

The club will have its first meeting at noon on Oct. 20 in the COCC multicultural center.

— Reporter: 541-633-2160, tleeds@bendbulletin.com