Elim Bible College is a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * "In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorded ...

Christian college A Christian college is an educational institution or part of an educational institute dedicated to the integration of Christianity, Christian faith and integration of faith and learning, learning in traditional academic fields. Unlike Bible colle ...

Lima, New York Lima (, the name is a shibboleth) is a town in Livingston County, New York, United States. The population was 4,154 at the 2020 census. The town is in the northeast part of the county, south of Rochester. The village of Lima is located withi ...

. It awards bachelors degrees in theology and business management, an

associate degree An associate degree or associate's degree is an undergraduate degree awarded after a course of post-secondary study lasting two to three years. It is a level of academic qualification above a high school diploma and below a bachelor's degree ...

, and one-year certificates.

History

Elim was founded in 1924 in

Endwell, New York Endwell is a hamlet (and census-designated place) located in the town of Union in Broome County, New York, United States. Its population was 11,446 at the 2010 census. Endwell is situated between the villages of Endicott and Johnson City. ...

, by Ivan Quay Spencer and Minnie Spencer. The school is named for a biblical location found in

Exodus Exodus or the Exodus may refer to: Religion * Book of Exodus, second book of the Hebrew Torah and the Christian Bible * The Exodus, the biblical story of the migration of the ancient Israelites from Egypt into Canaan Historical events * Ex ...

15:27, wherein Elim is described as an

oasis In ecology, an oasis (; : oases ) is a fertile area of a desert or semi-desert environmentRochester and Red Creek and then in 1932 to

Hornell Hornell is a city in Steuben County, New York, United States. The population was 8,259 at the 2020 census. The city is named after the Hornell family, early settlers. The City of Hornell is surrounded by Town of Hornellsville. Hornell is about ...

, 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 The Genesee Wesleyan Seminary was the name of two institutions located on the same site in Lima, New York. The Genesee Wesleyan Seminary was founded in 1831 by the Genesee Annual Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church after the Conference ...

. Beginning in 1948, Elim was a center for the Latter Rain Movement in

Pentecostalism Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a movement within the broader Evangelical wing of Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that emphasizes direct personal experience of God in Christianity, God through Baptism with the Holy Spirit#Cl ...

. For most of its history, Elim was not

accredited Accreditation is the independent, third-party evaluation of a conformity assessment body (such as certification body, inspection body or laboratory) against recognised standards, conveying formal demonstration of its impartiality and competence to ...

and awarded certificate diplomas rather than degrees. In 2020, the school was accredited by the

Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools The Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools (TRACS) is a U.S. based institutional accreditation organization that focuses on Christian colleges, universities, and seminaries seeking collegiate accreditation in the United Sta ...

. As of January 27, 2025, the school was officially renamed Elim Bible College.

Academics

Elim Bible College offers accredited degree programs including a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...

Theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

, a

Business Management Business administration is the administration of a commercial enterprise. It includes all aspects of overseeing and supervising the business operations of an organization. Overview The administration of a business includes the performance o ...

, and an

Associate of Applied Science An associate degree or associate's degree is an undergraduate degree awarded after a course of post-secondary study lasting two to three years. It is a level of academic qualification above a high school diploma and below a bachelor's degree. ...

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.

Campus

The Elim campus in Lima was originally the site of Genesee Wesleyan Seminary of the

Methodist Episcopal Church The Methodist Episcopal Church (MEC) was the oldest and largest Methodist denomination in the United States from its founding in 1784 until 1939. It was also the first religious denomination in the US to organize itself nationally. In 1939, th ...

, which opened in 1831 as one of the first

coeducation Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to ...

al schools in the United States, constructing the buildings now known as College Hall and Spencer Hall in the

Greek Revival Greek Revival architecture is a architectural style, style that began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe, the United States, and Canada, ...

style.

Genesee College Genesee College was founded as the Genesee Wesleyan Seminary, in 1831, by the Methodist Episcopal Church. The college was located in Lima, New York, and eventually relocated to Syracuse, becoming Syracuse University. Genesee Wesleyan Seminary ...

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 Syracuse most commonly refers to: * Syracuse, Sicily, Italy; in the province of Syracuse * Syracuse, New York, USA; in the Syracuse metropolitan area Syracuse may also refer to: Places * Syracuse railway station (disambiguation) Italy * Provi ...

, where it became the basis of

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York, United States. It was established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church but has been nonsectarian since 1920 ...

. The seminary continued to occupy the campus until it closed in 1941.Joyce Rapp
Historic Lima
Shortly thereafter, the

National Youth Administration The National Youth Administration (NYA) was a New Deal agency sponsored by Presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt, Franklin D. Roosevelt during his presidency. It focused on providing work and education for Americans between the ages of 16 and 25. ...

(NYA), a

New Deal The New Deal was a series of wide-reaching economic, social, and political reforms enacted by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the United States between 1933 and 1938, in response to the Great Depression in the United States, Great Depressi ...

project championed by

Eleanor Roosevelt Anna Eleanor Roosevelt ( ; October 11, 1884November 7, 1962) was an American political figure, diplomat, and activist. She was the longest-serving First Lady of the United States, first lady of the United States, during her husband Franklin D ...

, briefly made the campus the location for one of the NYA's experimental resident work centers. The center provided

vocational training Vocational education is education that prepares people for a Skilled worker, skilled craft. Vocational education can also be seen as that type of education given to an individual to prepare that individual to be gainfully employed or self em ...

to underprivileged students until its closure in the summer of 1942. The

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

Church operated a new Genesee Junior College at the site from 1947 to 1951, when Elim Bible Institute bought the campus and buildings for $75,000. Two campus buildings, Genesee Wesleyan Seminary, and Genesee College Hall, were listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1976.

Leadership

* Ivan Spencer (1924–1949) * I. Carlton Spencer (1949–) son of Ivan Spencer who also led

Elim Fellowship Elim Fellowship is a Finished Work Pentecostal denomination of Christianity. It was founded in 1933 in Lima, New York, United States. It is named for a biblical location named in Exodus 15:27, wherein Elim is described as an oasis in the wilder ...

for many yearsPresidential Reflections: 80 Years of Ministry
, Elim ''Bell Tower'', Summer 2004 * 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 1978Winds of Change: Generation to Generation
, Elim ''Bell Tower'', Summer 2006 * Michael Cavanaugh (2012–2019) – founder of Elim Gospel Church, now Elim Life Church and a 1976 graduate of Elim * Fred Antonelli (2019–present) – installed in May 2020.

Related religious organizations

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 Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a movement within the broader Evangelical wing of Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that emphasizes direct personal experience of God in Christianity, God through Baptism with the Holy Spirit#Cl ...

and

Charismatic Charisma () is a personal quality of magnetic charm, persuasion, or appeal. In the fields of sociology and political science, psychology, and management, the term ''charismatic'' describes a type of leadership. In Christian theology, the term ...

churches, ministers, and missions, providing

credentials A credential is a piece of any document that details a qualification, competence, or authority issued to an individual by a third party with a relevant or '' de facto'' authority or assumed competence to do so. Examples of credentials include ac ...

and counsel for ministers, encouraging fellowship among local churches, sponsoring leadership seminars, and also serving as a transdenominational agency sending

missionaries A missionary is a member of a religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Miss ...

and other personnel to other countries. Elim Life Church, formerly Elim Gospel Church, an

interdenominational Ecumenism ( ; alternatively spelled oecumenism)also called interdenominationalism, or ecumenicalismis the concept and principle that Christians who belong to different Christian denominations should work together to develop closer relationships ...

Full Gospel The Full Gospel or Fourfold Gospel is an evangelical doctrine that summarizes the Gospel in four aspects, namely the Salvation (Christianity), salvation, sanctification, faith healing and Second Coming of Christ. It has been used in various Christi ...

church, was established neighboring the Elim campus in 1988 and is attended by a significant number of the College's faculty and students.

Notable alumni

Paul Schenck Paul Chaim Schenck (born 1958) is a Catholic priest, pastoral counselor, and clinical chaplain. Early life and work Schenck was born in Glen Ridge, New Jersey, to Henry P. Schenck and Marjorie M. Apgar. He has two sisters and an identical twi ...

, anti-abortion activist and religious leader *

Rob Schenck Robert Leonard Schenck (born 1958) is an American Evangelical clergyman who has ministered to elected and appointed officials in Washington, D.C. and serves as president of a non-profit organization named for Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Schenck founde ...

, co-founder of the

anti-abortion Anti-abortion movements, also self-styled as pro-life movements, are involved in the abortion debate advocating against the practice of abortion and its Abortion by country, legality. Many anti-abortion movements began as countermovements in r ...

activist group Operation Rescue. His activism was motivated by their exposure at Elim to the teachings of theologian

Francis Schaeffer Francis August Schaeffer (January 30, 1912 – May 15, 1984) was an American evangelical theologian, philosopher, and Presbyterian pastor. He co-founded the L'Abri community in Switzerland with his wife Edith Schaeffer, , a prolific auth ...

, whose then-recent book ''A Christian Manifesto'' encouraged evangelicals to engage in

political activism Activism consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived common good. Forms of activism range from mandate build ...

to combat

secular humanism Secular humanism is a philosophy, belief system, or life stance that embraces human reason, logic, secular ethics, and philosophical naturalism, while specifically rejecting religious dogma, supernaturalism, and superstition as the basi ...

.Eyal Press (2007),
Absolute Convictions: My Father, a City, and the Conflict That Divided America
', Macmillan, , . Pages 129–131.

Garry Wills Garry Wills (born May 22, 1934) is an American author, journalist, political philosopher, and historian, specializing in American history, politics, and religion, especially the history of the Catholic Church. He won a Pulitzer Prize for Gener ...

(1990),
Under God: Religion and American Politics
', Simon and Schuster, , . Page 324. *

Randall Terry Randall Allen Terry (born April 25, 1959) is an American politician and activist. Terry founded the anti-abortion organization Operation Save America, Operation Rescue. Beginning in 1987, the group became particularly prominent for blockading th ...

(class of 1981), co-founder of the

activist group Operation Rescue

References

External links

* {{authority control Seminaries and theological colleges in New York (state) Universities and colleges established in 1924 Bible colleges in the United States Education in Livingston County, New York Evangelicalism in New York (state) Hornell, New York Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools 1924 establishments in New York (state)