UNITED STATES
Washington Post
By Michelle Boorstein October 2
Two days after news of a Kim Davis-Pope Francis meeting renewed the U.S. fascination over what this pope stands for, the Vatican on Friday put out a statement that appeared to downgrade the visit’s significance, saying it should “not be considered a form of support” of the Kentucky clerk’s “position in all of its particular and complex aspects.”
Davis, an Apostolic Christian who went to jail rather than allow her office to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, has become a polarizing figure in the country’s debate over religious freedom.
Since the revelation that she met with Francis — an event that was announced by her lawyer, not the Vatican, and kept secret until after the pope had returned to Rome — church insiders have been furiously swapping rumors about who exactly set up the meeting, which U.S. bishops knew of it, who was happy about it and who was upset.
The meeting was cheered by conservatives, who view Francis with suspicion because of previous statements that appeared to be accepting of homosexuality. But it was greeted with dismay by liberals, who have embraced Francis precisely because of his reluctance to engage in U.S. culture wars and his “who-am-I-to-judge” attitude.
[Capehart: Why I am disappointed with Pope Francis]
Church leaders in the United States and in Rome have been resolutely tight-lipped about the meeting, perhaps concerned about the prospect of appearing to publicly rebuke or challenge the pope, particularly on such a sensitive issue.
Among those who declined to comment was the Rev. Carlo Maria Vigano, the Vatican’s ambassador to the United States, at whose residence the meeting took place. On Friday, the Vatican said Davis was among dozens of people “invited by the Nunciature” — or the ambassador. Church-watchers have debated and swapped rumors all week about whether Vigano worked on his own to set up the meeting, or at the behest of the pope himself, or in tandem with other bishops or religious freedom advocates or donors.
Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.