About Us > Our Pastor

Fr. Edwin F. Gearhart is pastor of St. Teresa of the Child Jesus Church, and goes by Fr. Ed or Fr. Gearhart. Born in Sidney, Ohio in 1946, Fr. Gearhart began his studies for the priesthood at the then St. Gregory's Seminary in Cincinnati (now the Athenaeum) in 1960 before moving to Mt. St. Mary's Seminary then in Norwood in 1966. After ordination to priesthood on June 2, 1973, he taught religion at McAuley High School, Cincinnati, and was resident associate at St. Matthias, Forest Park. In 1975, he was a summer chaplain at Good Samaritan Hospital, Cincinnati. Then he began four and a half years at Guardian Angels, Cincinnati, as full-time associate. In 1980, Fr. Ed went back to Good Samaritan full-time as hospital chaplain. From 1985 to 1987, he studied Canon Law at the University of St. Thomas in Rome (the Angelicum) where he received his JCL degree. This began twenty years on the Tribunal staff where he was Judicial Vicar in January 1989 until January 2006. He served in a number of associate and administrative capacities at parishes throughout southwest Ohio before becoming pastor in Cincinnati in 1995 of St. Leo and in addition in 2000 of St Bonventure until the two parishes merged as St. Leo in 2003 He was transferred to St. Teresa in July 2007. Fr. Ed has BA in Philosophy, MA in Philosophy, MA in Theology, and MDiv from the Athenaeum, as well as his JCL from the Angelicum.