Elim Bible College

For the British college formerly called Elim Bible College, see Regents Theological College.

Elim Bible College

Former name	Elim Bible Institute, Elim Bible Institute and College
Type	Private college
Established	1924;101 years ago (1924)
Founder	Ivan Q. Spencer
Accreditation	TRACS
Religious affiliation	Christian
President	Fred Antonelli
Provost	Danuta Case
Academic staff	4 full-time and 24 part-time and adjunct (2023)
Students	98 (2023)
Location	Lima , New York , United States
Campus	Small-town, 75 acres (30 ha)
Language	English
Colors	Blue, white, orange
Mascot	Judah the Lion
Website	elim.edu

Elim Bible College is a private Christian college in Lima, New York. It awards bachelors degrees in theology and business management, an associate degree, and one-year certificates.

History

Elim was founded in 1924 in Endwell, New York, by Ivan Quay Spencer and Minnie Spencer. The school is named for a biblical location found in Exodus 15:27, wherein Elim is described as an oasis in the wilderness. ^{[1] [2]}

In the 1920s, the school moved to Rochester and Red Creek and then in 1932 to Hornell, where it was located until 1951 when it moved to its current site in Lima, which formerly had been the campus of the site of Genesee Wesleyan Seminary. ^{[3] [4]}

Beginning in 1948, Elim was a center for the Latter Rain Movement in Pentecostalism. ^{[5] [6]}

For most of its history, Elim was not accredited and awarded certificate diplomas rather than degrees. In 2020, the school was accredited by the Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools. ^[7]

As of January 27, 2025, the school was officially renamed Elim Bible College. ^[8]

Academics

Elim Bible College offers accredited degree programs including a Bachelor of Science in Theology, a Bachelor of Science in Business Management, and an Associate of Applied Science in Biblical and Theological Studies. In addition to the degree programs, Elim also offers the accredited one-year Launch Certificate program and the less-rigorous and unaccredited Spiritual Enrichment Certificate program. ^[9]

Campus

The Elim campus in Lima was originally the site of Genesee Wesleyan Seminary of the Methodist Episcopal Church, which opened in 1831 as one of the first coeducational schools in the United States, constructing the buildings now known as College Hall and Spencer Hall in the Greek Revival style. Genesee College was founded on the same campus in 1849 as an expansion of the seminary. The two institutions shared the campus until 1870 when Genesee College relocated to Syracuse, where it became the basis of Syracuse University. The seminary continued to occupy the campus until it closed in 1941. ^[10]

Shortly thereafter, the National Youth Administration (NYA), a New Deal project championed by Eleanor Roosevelt, briefly made the campus the location for one of the NYA's experimental resident work centers. The center provided vocational training to underprivileged students until its closure in the summer of 1942. ^[11]

The Methodist Church operated a new Genesee Junior College at the site from 1947 to 1951, when Elim Bible Institute bought the 75-acre (300,000 m²) campus and buildings for $75,000. ^[10] Two campus buildings, Genesee Wesleyan Seminary, and Genesee College Hall, were listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976. ^[12]

Leadership

• Ivan Spencer (1924–1949)
• I. Carlton Spencer (1949–) son of Ivan Spencer who also led Elim Fellowship for many years ^{[13] [14]}
• H. David Edwards
• Michael Webster
• Paul Johansson (1994–2006) – student at Elim from 1956 to 1959
• Jeff Clark (2006–2012) – completed his studies at Elim in 1978 ^{[13] [15]}
• Michael Cavanaugh (2012–2019) – founder of Elim Gospel Church, now Elim Life Church ^[16] and a 1976 graduate of Elim ^[17]
• Fred Antonelli (2019–present) – installed in May 2020. ^[18]

Related religious organizations

Elim Fellowship was formed in 1933 as an informal fellowship of churches, ministers, and missionaries originating from a nucleus of people who had attended the Elim Bible Institute. The incorporated Fellowship continues to support Pentecostal and Charismatic churches, ministers, and missions, providing credentials and counsel for ministers, encouraging fellowship among local churches, sponsoring leadership seminars, and also serving as a transdenominational agency sending missionaries and other personnel to other countries. ^{[19] [20]}

Elim Life Church, formerly Elim Gospel Church, an interdenominational Full Gospel church, was established neighboring the Elim campus in 1988 and is attended by a significant number of the College's faculty and students. ^[21]

Notable alumni

• Paul Schenck, anti-abortion activist and religious leader ^{[22] [23]}
• Rob Schenck, co-founder of the anti-abortion activist group Operation Rescue. His activism was motivated by their exposure at Elim to the teachings of theologian Francis Schaeffer, whose then-recent book A Christian Manifesto encouraged evangelicals to engage in political activism to combat secular humanism. ^{[24] [25] [26] [27] [22] [28]}
• Randall Terry (class of 1981), co-founder of the anti-abortion activist group Operation Rescue and Constitution Party nominee for the 2024 United States presidential election

References

1. Our History Archived 2010-05-15 at the Wayback Machine , Elim Bible Institute website, accessed May 24, 2010
2. "About", Elim Bible Institute website, accessed May 24, 2010
3. James Goche (May 1976). "National Register of Historic Places Registration: Genesee Wesleyan Seminary and Genesee College Hall". New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Archived from the original on August 26, 2012. Retrieved May 24, 2010.
4. Benjamin and Sarah Dodzweit Archived 2011-07-23 at the Wayback Machine , Corpus Christi Bible College website, accessed May 25, 2010
5. Peter Althouse (2003), Spirit of the last days: Pentecostal Eschatology in Conversation with Jürgen Moltmann , Volume 25 of Journal of Pentecostal Theology , Continuum International Publishing Group. ISBN   0-8264-6685-0, ISBN   978-0-8264-6685-3
6. Richard M. Riss, Singing In the Spirit in the Holiness, Pentecostal, Latter Rain, and Charismatic Movements, paper delivered at Orlando '95, a conference sponsored by the North American Renewal Service Committee, July 28, 1995. Retrieved from Pentecostal-Charismatic Theological Inquiry International, May 24, 2010
7. "Accreditation".
8. "Elim Bible College Facebook Page". Facebook. January 28, 2025. Retrieved January 28, 2025.
9. "Academic Programs". Elim Bible Institute and College.
10. Joyce Rapp, Historic Lima Archived March 3, 2016, at the Wayback Machine
11. Gordon Halstead (Project Director of NYA Resident Work Center, Lima, NY), Work—Study—Live: The Resident Youth Centers of the NYA Archived 2007-07-01 at the Wayback Machine , The New Deal Network website (accessed June 25, 2007)
12. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
13. Presidential Reflections: 80 Years of Ministry Archived 2010-09-20 at the Wayback Machine , Elim Bell Tower, Summer 2004
14. Pentecostal Denominations Archived February 2, 2020, at the Wayback Machine , Seeking4Truth.com website, accessed May 25, 2010
15. Winds of Change: Generation to Generation Archived 2010-09-20 at the Wayback Machine , Elim Bell Tower, Summer 2006
16. "About Us – Elim Life Church" . Retrieved June 19, 2023.
17. "Pastor Mike Cavanaugh - Elim Bible Institute". Archived from the original on February 12, 2013. Retrieved June 6, 2012.
18. "Dr. Fred Antonelli Elected as New President of Elim Bible Institute and College". October 28, 2019.
19. "Elim Fellowship: About Elim". Archived from the original on April 26, 2007. Retrieved June 26, 2007.
20. "Wellsville Full Gospel Church website". Archived from the original on August 8, 2007. Retrieved June 26, 2007.
21. "Elim Gospel Church website". Archived from the original on January 28, 2013. Retrieved January 13, 2010.
22. Eyal Press (2007), Absolute Convictions: My Father, a City, and the Conflict That Divided America , Macmillan, ISBN   0-312-42657-7, ISBN   978-0-312-42657-6. Pages 129–131.
23. Diocese Appoints New Directors Archived 2011-07-17 at the Wayback Machine , Roman Catholic Diocese of Harrisburg, accessed May 25, 2010
24. Max Blumenthal, God's Country; Lobbying for a theocracy, one member of Congress at a time Archived 2009-06-06 at the Wayback Machine , The Washington Monthly, October 2003.
25. Garry Wills, "Save The Babies", Time , May 1, 1989
26. Jeanie Kasendorf, Abortion in New York, New York , September 18, 1989. Page 38.
27. Karen Tumulty and Lynn Smith, Operation Rescue: Soldier in a 'Holy War' on Abortion, Los Angeles Times , March 17, 1989
28. Garry Wills (1990), Under God: Religion and American Politics , Simon and Schuster, ISBN   1-4165-4335-X, ISBN   978-1-4165-4335-0. Page 324.

External links

• Official website

42°54′30.2″N77°36′48.9″W / 42.908389°N 77.613583°W / 42.908389; -77.613583