Frank A Eberhardt

Dr. Frank Eberhardt was born on February 1, 1954 in Philadelphia, PA. He was a lifelong missionary with the goal of reaching Roman Catholics with the Gospel. He was a prolific speaker and student of the Scriptures.

From birth, Frank had a deep desire to serve God as a Catholic priest. In 1968, he entered St. Joseph’s Seminary in Princeton, NJ to train as a missionary priest under the order of Saint Vincent De Paul. During his enrollment, he was confronted with a number of questions from faithful Catholics that he could not answer. Simple questions of theology such as “how many masses must be held to release a soul from purgatory” and “how does a faithful Catholic know that they will go to heaven”? Frank had a deep respect and trust of the Scriptures, and this led him to search them thoroughly to find those answers. With every question, he discovered the answers, but he found them to be in conflict with what his theology instructors were teaching him. The more he searched for answers, the more questions he had. He began to slowly believe that the teachings of the Catholic Church did not agree with the dictates of the Scriptures.

Eventually, not knowing that his parents had already begun a similar journey, Frank asked his parents to find a man who could answer his questions with Scripture. Soon after that, Frank met with his parent’s new pastor. For over 6 hours, along with his sister Doreen who was pursuing her vocation at a Convent, they went over every question, and there he finally received the answers he sought. In the end, Frank realized that the death of Jesus on the cross was the all sufficient sacrifice for our sins and that only by placing ones trust in Christ’s completed work could one be forgiven of their sins and have the assurance of eternal life. In the end, not only did Frank find Christ, but so did his Mom, Dad and his sister.

After his commitment to Christ, Frank finished his last few months at St. Joseph to complete his degree and then enrolled in Bob Jones University to study Bible. He graduated in 1976. Frank married his wife Kim and then embarked on a career in ministry, beginning with the planting of a church in Fayetteville, NC. During his ministry, Frank frequently taught on the differences between Roman Catholic Doctrine and the Scriptures. With his unique understanding of these dual theological systems, Frank became a sought after speaker in churches and conferences worldwide. This led him to start Gospel Outreach International to serve as a platform for his ministry and serve as a resource for the numerous books, recordings, videos and other media that focused on Roman Catholic evangelism. Frank served as adjunct faculty at Bob Jones University and on the board of a number of ministries including Puerto Rico Baptist College which conferred Frank an honorary Doctorate in 2009.

A capstone of Frank’s ministry was his involvement with the release of a video entitled Catholicism, Crisis of Faith which was translated into 8 languages and praised by John MacArthur, Hal Lindsey and Dave Hunt. The video interviewed a number of former priests and nuns that had left the Catholic Church for the truth of the Scriptures. The purpose of the interviews were not disclosed to each contributor and the final product was a testimony of unity of God’s Spirit.

The last decade of Frank’s life presented a number of challenges to the ministry but Frank continued to serve as much as God would allow. Frank suffered from chronic back pain and in 2003, his wife Kim ended a long struggle with cancer while his children were still teenagers. He also cared for his mother who lived in their home. We praise God that today we know that he is pain free and once again fellowshipping with those that we have lost through the years, and we look forward to seeing him again someday.

Frank A. Eberhardt, 60 of Greer, SC went to be with his Lord in Heaven on Sunday, August 31, 2014. He was the son of Frances and the late Henry Eberhardt. Along with his mother, he is survived by a son: Daniel Eberhardt and a daughter: Melissa Eberhardt. Frank was predeceased by his wife Kim Eberhardt. Visitation will be Thursday, September 4, 2014 from 6 -9 pm at Woodlawn Funeral Home. Funeral service will be Friday, September 5, 2014 at 11:00 am in the chapel of Woodlawn Funeral Home with burial to follow in Woodlawn Memorial Park. More details at www.woodlawn-fh.com

Arrangements under the direction of Woodlawn Funeral Home, Greenville, SC.