Pope Francis' meeting with Kim Davis should not be misinterpreted as a papal endorsement of the Kentucky county clerk's refusal to apply the law and issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, the Holy See insisted on Friday.

"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," chief Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi said, according to The New York Times.

The Church seems to have taken note of the media uproar that followed its first acknowledgement of the encounter between the pontiff and Davis, which took place at Washington's Apostolic Nunciature during Francis' visit to the United States.

The leader of the world's more than 1.2 billion Catholics held only one "real audience" in the nation's capital, which he granted to Yayo Grassi, a former former student of his, the Vatican said. Grassi, an openly gay man who lives in Washington, said he had been accompanied by Iwan Bagus, his partner of 19 years, along with four friends.

Meanwhile, Lombardi said the Davis meeting had been 10-minute private encounter at which only the clerk, her husband and the pontiff were present, CNN reported. That account, relayed by Davis' lawyer, Mat Staver, was inaccurate as "several dozen" people were present at the Vatican embassy during the event, the spokesman said.

"Such brief greetings occur on all papal visits and are due to the Pope's characteristic kindness and availability," Lombardi said.

The apparently informal nature of the encounter had not kept Davis from interpreting the invitation as a full papal endorsement last week.

"Just knowing the pope is on track with what we're doing, and agreeing, you know, kind of validates everything," she told ABC News. "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.'"