Kentucky clerk Kim Davis met with Pope Francis during his visit to the United States, but a Vatican spokesman said Friday the meeting should not be considered an endorsement of Davis.
"The Pope did not enter into the details of the situation of Mrs. Davis, and his meeting with her should not be considered a form of support of her position in all of its particular and complex aspects,"
CNN quoted Vatican spokesman the Rev. Federico Lombardi from a statement.
Davis spent six days in jail after being found in contempt of court when she refused to issue marriage licenses to gay couples.
After Davis' lawyer, Mat Staver, released the news that Davis met for 10 minutes with Pope Francis on Sept. 24, many people went online to express their opinions about the meeting.
Davis said the meeting supported her cause.
"Just knowing the Pope is on track with what we're doing, and agreeing, you know, kind of validates everything," she told
ABC News, adding in a statement. "Pope Francis was kind, genuinely caring, and very personable. He even asked me to pray for him. Pope Francis thanked me for my courage and told me to 'stay strong.' "
Staver, who was not there when Davis and the Pope met, had said the meeting was a private one between Davis and the Pope. Lombardi disputed that.
"Such brief greetings occur on all papal visits and are due to the Pope's characteristic kindness and availability. The only real audience granted by the pope at the nunciature (embassy) was with one of his former students and his family," CNN quoted Lombardi.
The Vatican's Friday morning clarification of the Pope's visit with Davis created another social media firestorm of opinions:
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