"The allegations are sensational," his lawyer, James Pabarue, said in a lengthy interview Thursday. But they are "half-truths," he added, concocted by parties in the diocese eager for Bennison's ouster.
Jack Henn, a former member of the diocesan council, disagreed. In an e-mail, he called the abuse and its alleged concealment "a terrible injustice."
Bennison's leadership style displayed "a pattern of untruths and imperial tactics," Henn continued, "that "finally caught up with him."
This will be just the third trial of a bishop in the 232-year history of the Episcopal Church USA. The judges will be five bishops, two priests and two laypeople.
The trial is expected to last several days. The judges are likely to take several weeks before issuing a verdict.
If found guilty, Bennison can be reprimanded, suspended, or removed permanently from all clerical offices in the Episcopal Church. He can appeal.
Like all witnesses and other principals in the case, Bennison has been instructed by the court not to talk to reporters.
That injunction did not stop Pabarue, a big, extroverted Center City lawyer with a gray goatee who specializes in employment law.
"I can't believe they want to go ahead and have these documents exposed," he said at a conference table in his office as he pushed across a stack of letters by various bishops.
The letters indicate that many prominent bishops of the Episcopal Church, including some who endorsed and one who consecrated Bennison as bishop, have known about his handling of his brother's abuse for decades.
"So why are we here?" Pabarue asked. "Because the standing committee of the diocese" - approximately equivalent to a board of directors - "is using half-truths to force Bishop Bennison out of the diocese."
Michael F. Rehill, the diocese's chancellor, or chief legal officer, called Pabarue's assertion "totally false."
