Pope Benedict XVI has rewarded his longtime loyal secretary by making him a bishop in an elaborate ceremony in St. Peter's Basilica.

The pontiff and Monsignor Georg Gaenswein, a fellow German, embraced warmly. Benedict, 85, held up well during the nearly three-hour long service Sunday, which also marked Epiphany, a Catholic feast day.

Gaenswein, 56, has been Benedict's closest aide for years, and helped steer the papal household through an embarrassing scandal of leaked documents last year. A Vatican court convicted the pope's former butler, Paolo Gabriele, of stealing the documents from the papal apartment. Benedict has since pardoned him.