Pope's Brother Embroiled in Abuse Scandal

Pope Benedict's older brother has been linked to a sex abuse scandal rocking the Catholic Church in Germany. Allegations of abuse at a boarding school whose choir Georg Ratzinger ran for 30 years have surfaced, although he has denied any knowledge of abuse and has agreed to testify in any prosecutions, the Independent reports.

Ratzinger, 86, says that the cases of abuse being investigated date to before he took command of the famous Regensburger boys' choir in 1964. German composer Franz Wittenbrink, however, who was a student at the boarding school until 1967, told Der Speigel that the priest-run school had "an elaborate system of sadistic punishments combined with sexual lust," during his time there. Wittenbrink says it is "inexplicable" that Ratzinger knew nothing of what was happening. (More Georg Ratzinger stories.)