"The material brought by the panel from California that you will hear has left an indelible imprint on their lives, and while it occurred many years ago, it is still vividly present in their memories," said The Rev. Judith Beck co-convener of Concerned Pennsylvania Episcopalians, a group of clergy and laity working to get rid of Bennison.

Ron Thompson, husband of Maggie Thompson, ex-wife of the bishop's now deposed brother, the Rev. John Bennison, said there had been a long history of Bennison's sexual, emotional and spiritual abuse. "Clergy sexual abuse and the attempts to cover it up are damaging. The cessation of the acts does not end the problem. The abuse of a child goes through adolescence and adulthood with long term effects that affect day to day functioning. Clergy sexual abuse affects sexual identity and self identity. It destroys the souls of those whom they abuse, it also destroys the divine mission of the church as well. It makes people believe that Christ is a myth and worthy only of distrust."

"Victims never know the thought processes of secrecy and deceit. John Bennison reduced the horizon of choice as he spun his web of lies. The biggest lie is that the victim possesses choice. The truth is, she is not an empowered choice maker. Maggie has lived with emotional fallout for decades," said Thompson.

More than 100 Episcopalians filled the sanctuary of the church and heard more than two hours of emotionally charged testimony culminating with the Rev. Glenn Matis, a member of the Standing Committee calling for Charles Bennison to resign or retire.

Jane Cosby co-moderator of the event said the sexual misconduct by Bennison (between 1972-1976) was never reported to the authorities by Charles Bennison or by anyone else. John Bennison who became a priest when his brother was a parish priest at St. Mark's in Upland County, California and continued to function as a priest till June 2006 when public scrutiny by the media exposed what he had done. The issues were then publicly aired by the media and he was finally deposed.

The four speakers said their stories in these three forums were intended to educate and bring healing. People were free to draw their own conclusions. "We are not trying to get rid of Bishop Bennison that is not our business," the speakers said.

"Our faith speaks to us of justice through truth, forgiveness and repentance," said one speaker. "Our mission is to proclaim the justice of God."

Maggie Thompson, John Bennison's ex-wife recounted her long relationship with the Bennison family referring to Charles as "Chuck" and seeing them as "mum and dad". She said she started dating John when she was 15 and knew his father who was the Bishop of Western Michigan. They were married in 1969.

"John entered seminary in California and then worked for his brother Chuck at his brother's church in 1972 as assistant for programs working with Sunday School and junior and senior high students. He recruited a 19-year old girl and initiated frequent sexual contact with her, and then told his wife that their marriage was "on the edge of sexual enlightenment." He did not love her, he told his wife, said the sexual encounter would only deepen their own marital relationship. He urged her to keep it a secret or it could damage his career and affect their marriage. Maggie believed him after John said he had come to believe in monogamous marriage. "We thought we had overcome these hurdles and renewed our wedding vows with Chuck presiding," she said.

"I only learned last year that he had in fact raped the 19-year old pushing her head into a pillow as he had sex with her," she told the stunned audience. Some members of the audience were weeping as they heard of Bennison's sexual exploits.

"In 1973 he began to molest a 14-year old while telling me our marriage 'was a special gift from God.' He told her that no one would believe him, and if I told anyone his career would end. I kept trying to please John. In several instances we questioned her about John. Chuck would confront him too, but John lied. Chuck never questioned him further."

"John was ordained a deacon, but in the Spring of 1975 he had sex with a 35-year old divorcee he was counseling. She walked out of the church and never came back. John was ordained in 1975 but his sexual addiction just escalated with another young girl and several other girls. Finally the 14-year old girl cut off all contact. In 1977 we separated. I gave up hope John would change and I moved to Santa Barbara and he to San Francisco."

Thompson said Chuck knew at least a year before [what was going on] and did not tell anyone about what was happening, or to ask about the awfulness of John's behavior. He never told then Los Angeles Bishop Robert C. Rusack even though he was mandated by canon law to do so. He also had a civil law obligation to report the criminal felony to civil authorities.

Later when there was a threat to have him deposed, John stepped down. Rusack never asked and John Bennison never said why. Divorce was made the issue. In 1978 the daughter told of John's abuse. "I told Bishop Rusack everything. I thought he would follow through. He listened and did nothing. John was reinstated in 1979 by Rusack. We were not informed. Rusack and Chuck [Bennison] covered up his offences and turned him over to the Diocese of California. I wanted to return to St. Mark's, but Chuck asked me not to come because he wanted me to be invisible to protect himself and his brother. In 1992/1993 the Rev. Margo Maris, an Episcopal priest and abuse counselor for almost 30 years investigated Bennison's misconduct for the church and was shocked that the bishop of California, San Francisco's William Swing, had allowed Bennison to remain at St. John's in Clayton (where he was now a priest) after reading all the sordid details.

Maris was quoted in a newspaper as saying: "I'm not talking about revenge, I'm talking about justice. And for me, it touches my soul in terms of what I think the priesthood is about and what I think the church is about."

(Bishop Swing refused to speak about the case, but he was later forced, because of extreme media exposure, to allow Bishop J. Jon Bruno to depose Bennison and toss him out of the ministry.)

Julia, the mother of the victim told Maggie after the intervention that what John did was wrong. "I contacted Chuck and asked him to be part of the intervention process. He responded but declined to act in the intervention. "I don't want to come to Minneapolis, it feels contrived. It is John's responsibility." Now 30 years later Chuck is still trying to abdicate his responsibility, she said.

INTERVENTION

But intervention did finally occur after television, print and Internet exposure. VOL ran several stories at that time and was in touch with an organization called SNAP an organization for survivors of sexual abuse. Written documents were produced. Bishop Swing was made fully aware of Bennison's misconduct. In Feb and July of 2006 John admitted to the facts of the story. But disclosure was only shared with a few people and kept top secret. "Bishop Swing, Chuck and John all minimized John's abuse and thought I would have to live with it," she said.

Julia said because of the time now gone and the statute of limitations, there were no legal or ecclesiastical issues that could hold Bennison accountable. They went to SNAP and explored going to the media. Publicity led to Swing's calling for Bennison resignation, but not before widespread outrage and damage had been done to The Episcopal Church. Bishop Bruno stepped in on June 12, 2006 and John Bennison permanently renounced his vows of priesthood and was deposed voluntarily.

Another woman, Susan also testified that she met Chuck Bennison when she was 10 years old and joined St. Mark's in the 70s when John was youth director and drove a Porsche. "He made many inappropriate remarks to me about how tight my pants were, and kept singing a song 'I'm easy'. So Sue are you easy, he used to ask. I said priests don't say things like that to nice young girls. He was a priest. John asked me and another girl to bend and take pictures from behind. Now as I look back I think what he did was down right scary."

Susan said Bennison would often put down his wife in front of her and say she "fat and doesn't look good. I saw her very hurt. Pretty soon I could not attend church, I was very uncomfortable. It was most painful for me. Did Chuck know? How could he have not known. Surely, I thought, Chuck would have done something. I thought he must have been a victim too. Why had the church not ascertained whether the youth group was safe? Didn't Chuck care about our safety? Why had the Episcopal Church not contacted me. Another looming question was how could John Bennison be still a practicing parish priest after signing a letter admitting he had a 6-year sexual relationship with a minor. Chuck was committing a felony by not reporting it."

Susan urged Pennsylvania Episcopalians to read the Bishop Clay Matthews report. He directs the Presiding Bishop's Office of Pastoral Development. Susan said she had contacted the Standing Committee and started a conversation with Mary Laney. I found her very compassionate, she said.

She said that Chuck Bennison had five times to do the right thing, but never did. "Darkness and evil surrounded our family," because of his silence, she said.

Addressing the audience Julia spoke again, reading excerpts of a letter to Bishop Borsch at the intervention in 1993. "I spoke to Charles Bennison, he knew about it already. He didn't do anything hoping it would blow over. He did not inform us or Bishop Rusack. I wrote to the bishop and got a form a letter back. He made a generic reference to Christ's love. John Bennison was guilty of statutory rape. Our daughter would have been subject to disbelief and censure had we pursued it publicly. Knowing John was safely out of the priesthood we did nothing. But in 1979 when we discovered that John had been reinstated, we felt a profound betrayal had been by the Episcopal Church and we were deliberately not told of these plans, it was clear to us that the welfare and desires of the priest took precedent over our feelings."

"John Bennison wormed his way into our family. It was this daughter of mine, the believer, who was victimized. Still I carry guilt about what happened as my job as a mother was to ensure that nothing bad happened and I did not do that. We were supplanted as parents and he took that privilege. It is to us, not him, she should have taken her adolescent needs and insecurities...it was our parental right and responsibility not his."

His reinstatement showed contempt by the hierarchy of the ECUSA. "I see it as another big corporation doing what is expedient. Postscript. My opinion has not changed."

Julia says she now worships at an evangelical church but, "I am still an Episcopalian at heart. I pity Charles Bennison; he does not have a Nathan to condemn him for his own sexual improprieties."

She concluded her testimony by reading an open letter to Charles Bennison which is reprinted below.

Charles Bennison has had his lawyers attending the forums. At St. George's, Bill Bullitt asked for transcripts of what was said. Julia gave him the letter to Charles Bennison. It remains to be seen if the lawyers plan to urge Bennison to resign or are planning something else. Who is paying these lawyers to attend these meetings?

OPEN LETTER TO CHARLES BENNISON, BISHOP OF PENNSYLVANIA

November 5, 2006 www.virtueonline.org

Dear Chuck,

I am so sad to be here today. For so many years I have kept you and your brother separate in my mind. He was the bad brother and you were the good brother. I've frequently been asked how I could continue to attend St. Mark's and continue to be your friend after the grievous harm done to my daughter by John, with your knowledge. In June of this year when I was interviewed for ABC7 about what transpired at St. John's Clayton when John's ugly past was revealed, the reporter opened the door for me to comment about the part that you played. I didn't bite. Even then, I protected you.

Don and I loved you and your family, including John and sweet Maggie. On two occasions when your father and mother came to visit from Michigan we invited them to dinner and so considered all the Bennison's as extensions of our own family. I have photos of a family party for my daughter's 16th birthday. She looked like a typical wholesome teenager, still wearing braces. John and Maggie were included as usual.

You encouraged liturgical art at St. Mark's and I supported you in that and designed vestments and banners and bulletin covers. I designed and stitched a stole for you when you left for Atlanta. I remember working on it as I sat by Don's bedside in his last days. It was intended for your first celebration of the Eucharist at your new church. Don died at almost the same time and thus, you were not there for the funeral. We missed you very much.

We stayed at St. Mark's and you married two of our daughters. You provided premarital counseling to my daughter and her husband. That was absurd, in retrospect.

So I protected you and you protected John and your father other clergy friends protected you both. Only gradually did I realize that no one was protecting us.

After the unsuccessful intervention in 1993 in which my daughter participated fully with honest and painful testimony, she accepted the fact that John would never suffer the consequences as she had, that the Episcopal Church would never discipline Charles Sr.'s son or Charles Jr.'s brother. John and his bishop triumphed. Only one of her needs was met, that of disclosure to those parishes affected. In John's parish it didn't occur, it was said, until a reporter, prompted by a press release I wrote, came looking around. And then, the disclosure was skewed.

Nevertheless as a woman of fierce faith she found peace, is fully recovered and is a wife and mother and highly respected health care professional.

Neither she nor I initiated the action that finally and belatedly removed John from ministry in June 2006. For my daughter it brought back the old memories and terrible losses. In addition there was extensive media coverage for the whole world to know. That was a heavy price for her to pay for his removal. She took no pleasure in it.

It's important to note that he was removed not because it was just and right and fair, but because the exposure by activists like Maggie and Susan and SNAP and reporters Dan Noyes KGOTV and Matthai Kuruvila of the San Francisco Chronicle embarrassed the Episcopal Church.

That's enough about John. Now Chuck, it's your turn. I didn't intend to come to these forums. Our family was to be represented by Andy alone. What changed my mind is that in interviews and in your letter to "Sisters and Brothers" of October 30, there are many inaccuracies, if not lies. Perhaps you want to believe them. I wouldn't blame you for that. But it is important to me that the record be set straight with honesty and truth.

To prepare for the forums, I reviewed many documents regarding John and you too. In 1978 after she first told us about John, you and I exchanged letters. You yourself wrote that you had known already. Remember? And I have letters to and from John and to and from Maggie and to and from Bishop Rusack.

Then from the time of the intervention in 1992-1993 there are more. I have letters from Bishop Swing, Bishop Browning, Bishop Borsch, and Bishop Hopkins, also from the senior warden attesting to the fact that she told you early on. She also wrote that Joan knew and presumably you also of a friend who was another of John's conquests. There are also letters from Margo Maris, our liaison in 1993. Thank God we now have women in the priesthood. There is a paper trail.

Most importantly, I have the witness of my daughter that when you unexpectedly walked in on compromising scenes in a Sunday school room and the church office, you must have suspected something. If you were, as we thought, our pastor and friend, you should surely have told us. But as you wrote later on March 30, 1978; "I have to be, not a pastor, but John's brother in this situation"; So please don't deny your part in this.

This has been a terrible tragedy for two families - our family has lived with it a long time and the Bennison family is just beginning to do so. There are may be other people who could have stopped the abuse had they dared to face it. I myself carry the grief and sorrow that I did not protect my daughter. And I believe that when you acknowledge that you, after all, knew what was going on, even before John was ordained as deacon, you will too. Our family does not want to hurt you, we are not working to have you removed from your position. That is not for us to decide.

You state in the Philadelphia Inquirer of November 1 that "Money is power and this is a power struggle over power and money in the diocese". That may be so Chuck, but it is not our family's struggle. While it's true that money is power, we, as followers of Jesus Christ, are confident that there is an even greater power. We look to Psalm 18 and declare: "I love you, O Lord my strength, O Lord, my stronghold, my crag, and my haven. My God, my rock in whom I put my trust, my shield, the horn of my salvation, and my refuge".

Faithfully,

Julia
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
November 5, 2006