Pope Francis reportedly met privately with Kim Davis while he was in Washington on Thursday and commended her courage in refusing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples.
Davis, a Kentucky clerk who spent five days in jail earlier this month for conscientiously objecting to sign marriage licenses for same-sex couples, had a private meeting with the pope on Thursday, according to a statement from Liberty Counsel. The statement carried the stamp of Liberty Counsel's founder and chair, Matt Staver, who is also Davis' lawyer in this case.
The pope reportedly thanked Davis for her courage and told her to "stay strong." He also both prayed for Kim and asked her to pray for him, and presented Davis and her husband with a Rosary each, that he had personally blessed.
Davis said she was "humbled to meet Pope Francis. Of all people, why me?"
"I never thought I would meet the Pope," she added. "Who am I to have this rare opportunity? I am just a County Clerk who loves Jesus and desires with all my heart to serve him."
Describing the pope, Davis said: "[he] 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'."
Reports of this encounter have been linked to the pope's comments in support of conscientious objection on board the Papal plane to Rome on Sunday night, when he called it a "human right."
"It must enter into every juridical structure because it is a right, a human right. Otherwise we would end up in a situation where we select what is a right, saying 'this right that has merit, this one does not'," he said.
The pontiff illustrated his point with reference to the 'Chanson de Roland', saying: "When the people were all in line and before them was the baptismal font and they had to choose between the baptismal font or the sword. They had to choose. They weren't permitted conscientious objection. It is right and if we want to make peace we have to respect all rights."
Although he did not specifically refer to Davis, when asked whether the right to conscientious objection extended to government officials, he said: "It is a human right and if a government official is a human person, he has that right."
Staver linked the two events: "Not only did Pope Francis know of Kim Davis, he personally met with her to express his support."
"Kim Davis has become a symbol of this worldwide conflict between Christian faith and recent cultural challenges regarding marriage," he said.