PHILADELPHIA — An Episcopal bishop accused of covering up abuse in the 1970s testified Wednesday that he never saw anything inappropriate between his brother and the teenage victim.

Bishop Charles E. Bennison Jr. is accused of concealing sexual abuse by his brother, John Bennison, then a lay minister at a California church where Bennison was rector.

Bennison, who now leads the Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania, testified at his church trial that he immediately confronted his brother after hearing a rumor about the impropriety. His brother, who was about to leave the California parish where he worked as a youth counselor, denied having any sexual contact with the girl.

"I was angry at him and I said, 'Get your stuff and get out of here," Charles Bennison testified.

He said he believed the rumor to be true but had no proof, so he didn't speak about it to the girl, her family, John Bennison's wife, or anyone else because he was trying to protect them and the church from scandal.

"I didn't want to embarrass her or shame her. That would be a serious charge against a high school girl," he testified. "People wouldn't have seen it (in the 1970s) as abuse; they would have seen it as immoral behavior on her part."

Bennison, 64, was formally "inhibited" by the diocese in November and ordered to "cease all episcopal, ministerial and canonical acts."

A nine-person panel of bishops, priests and church members hearing testimony this week is slated to announce a verdict within 30 days. If Bennison is found guilty, he could be reprimanded, suspended, or ousted from the church; if the body finds him not guilty, the complaint would be dismissed and Bennison would resume his duties.

A church indictment, called a presentment, charges that Bennison failed to investigate his brother's actions and protect the victim.