Pope Benedict XVI expressed his trust in his closest allies Wednesday and said the image of the Church in the media during the so-called "Vatileaks" scandal did not correspond to reality.

"I want to renew my trust and express encouragement towards my closest collaborators and all those who help me perform my ministry daily," the pontiff said, looking pale and tired in his first public comments over the leaking of secret papal documents.

"Unfounded hypotheses have been multiplying, amplified by certain media outlets, and have gone well beyond the facts to create an image of the Holy See which does not correspond to reality."

The pope made the comments in his weekly general audience, where he arrived for the first time without his butler, Paolo Gabriele, who was arrested during an investigation into Vatican whistleblowers who had been leaking information.

As recently as a week ago, Gabriele accompanied the pope to his general audience seated in the front of the "popemobile".

Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi had said Tuesday how betrayed the pontiff felt by his butler.

Gabriele was arrested Friday after he was found in possession of secret papal papers. But there is widespread speculation the 46-year-old was simply a pawn in a game of intrigue and struggle for power inside the Holy See.

The Vatican has said the investigation into the leak is continuing.

Some 15,000 people greeted Benedict XVI Wednesday with shouts of "long live the pope!"

In lengthy remarks, he spoke of Paul's letter to the Corinthians, saying the apostle had lived with "great sadness" after the early Christian congregation questioned his teachings.

"Dear brothers and sisters, our life and our path as Christians are often marked by difficulty, lack of understanding and suffering," he said.

"God's way, quite different from ours, gives us consolation, strength and hope... in the face of divisions in human relationships and also within families."