"In no way was this a personal attack, nor an indication of how to vote," Father Federico Lombardi told Vatican Radio. | Getty Pope didn't mean it personally to Trump, Vatican says

Pope Francis' remarks suggesting that Donald Trump was "not Christian" because of his calls to build a wall between the United States and Mexico did not represent a personal attack on the Republican presidential candidate, a Vatican spokesman said Friday.

"In no way was this a personal attack, nor an indication of how to vote," Father Federico Lombardi told Vatican Radio, according to Reuters' account, echoing Francis' original answer to a group of reporters aboard his plane in which he stated that in"regard to what I would advise, to vote or not to vote: I would not like to become involved."


Lombardi further explained that the message was consistent with the pope's message and fundamental teachings about not building walls between people.

Trump initially interpreted the pope's comments as a personal attack, issuing a fiery response calling them "disgraceful" and warning that the pope should hope that he is president in the event that the Islamic State tries to attack the Vatican.

After reviewing the pope's actual comments, however, Trump responded more favorably. In an interview with ABC on Friday morning, he said that the pontiff's remarks appeared "a little bit lighter" than initial media reports had indicated after he read them himself.