Pope Francis addresses a crowd Sept. 24 from the speaker's balcony with, from left, Vice President Joe Biden, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, and Speaker of the House John Boehner in Washington, D.C. While in Washington the pope met informally with Rowan County, Ky., Clerk Kim Davis. Photo by Leigh Vogel/UPI | License Photo

WASHINGTON, Oct. 2 (UPI) -- The Vatican said Friday Pope Francis' meeting with Kim Davis, Rowan County, Ky., clerk during the pope's visit to Washington, should not be considered a sign of support.

Davis, who was briefly jailed in September for her refusal to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, was among a group of people who attended a private meeting Sept. 25 with the pope.


A statement by spokesman the Rev. Federico Lombardi of the Holy See's Nunciature, or diplomatic mission, in Washington, D.C., said "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."

Lombardi's statement suggested their meeting was more part of an informal gathering as the pope left Washington for New York, than a "real audience."

An attorney for the Liberty Council, which has represented Davis, said Tuesday the pope encouraged her to "stay strong," gave her and her husband Joe rosaries as gifts and asked her, speaking in English with no interpreter, for her prayers, adding "Thank you for your courage."