The U.S. Secret Service detained a man outside the Dallas home of former President George W. Bush on Tuesday afternoon.

The unidentified man reportedly told Secret Service agents he was spiritually contacted to pick up a package from the Bush house.

Secret Service spokesman Ed Donovan said the man showed up "uninvited" at about 4:30 p.m., saying he wanted to see Bush. While agents and Dallas police questioned him, the man revealed that he had a gun in his nearby vehicle.

Donovan said the man had a permit for the gun and his answers checked out, so he was released and left.

Bush and his wife, Laura, were not home at the time.

The street leading to the house is blocked by a gate. Donovan declined to comment on how the man made it past the gate.

NBC 5's Ellen Goldberg contributed to this report.