Pope held private meeting with gay couple - a day BEFORE he met anti-gay Kentucky official Kim Davis 

• Pope Francis, 78, met with openly gay caterer Yayo Grassi and his partner 
• Video shows him embracing couple at Vatican Embassy on September 23
• He held secret meeting with Kentucky county clerk Kim Davis one day later
• Davis was jailed for refusing to issue same-sex marriage licenses in state 

By Jay Akbar For Mailonline

Published: 13:16 EST, 2 October 2015 | Updated: 15:41 EST, 2 October 2015

Pope Francis met with a gay American couple before holding a secret meeting with Kim Davis, the Kentucky clerk who was jailed for refusing to issue same-sex marriage licenses, it has been revealed.

Francis, 78, met an openly gay caterer named Yayo Grassi, his partner Iwan and their friends at Vatican Embassy in Washington on September 23.

Footage of the meeting shows the Argentinian pontiff warmly embracing the Grassi, a former student of the Pope's, and Iwan.

He met with controversial Kentucky county clerk Davis one day later but the Vatican claimed it was not 'a form of support for her position'.

Embrace: Pope Francis (right) met with an openly gay caterer named Yayo Grassi (left) and his partner Iwan (centre) at the Vatican Embassy in Washington on September 23

Old friends: He embraced Grassi, whom he had taught psychology at Inmaculada Concepcion high school in Argentina, and his partner Iwan (pictured)

Controversial: Just one day later, Francis met with Kim Davis pictured), the Kentucky clerk who was jailed for refusing to issue same-sex marriage licenses

Grassi, who studied under Francis at the Inmaculada Concepcion high school in Sante Fe, Argentina, from 1964 to 1965, said the pontiff has known he was gay 'for a long time'.

He told CNN how the pontiff had called him on the phone three weeks before his highly-anticipated visit to the United States to say he would 'love to give him a hug'.

He refused to go into the details of the meeting but said Francis has never judged him for being gay and had met him and Iwan once before in Rome.

Grassi added: 'Obviously he is the pastor of the church and he has to follow the church's teachings.

'But as a human being he understands all kinds of situations, and he is open to all kinds of people, including those with different sexual characteristics.'

Since he was named Pope in March 2013, Francis has urged mercy over judgement. He met with a transgender man from Spain in January and in 203, he famously said: 'Who am I to judge gay priests who seek to do God's will?'

Mixed messages: The Vatican said the Pope's meeting with Kim Davis was not 'a form of support for her position'

Grassi and the Pope have not always agreed on same-sex rights. In 2010, he criticised Francis for opposing gay rights during a heated debate over same-sex marriage in Argentina.

The Pope's former student believes he was 'misled' into meeting with Davis, the Kentucky official who spent six days behind bars for refusing to issue marriage licenses to gay couples.

Davis' lawyers claimed the papal meeting was an endorsement of her case, but the Vatican said it was not intended as a show of support and she was one of several people invited to meet him.  

Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi claimed the meeting was due to the Pope's 'kindness' and the only real 'audience' he had was with former students - like Grassi - and his family members.

An anonymous Vatican source told CNN there was a 'sense of regret' within the Holy See over the meeting with Davis, which was meant to be kept a secret.

An anonymous Vatican source told CNN there was a 'sense of regret' within the Holy See over the Pope's meeting with Davis

Ms Davis of Rowan County, Kentucky, spent almost a week in jail for defying a series of federal court orders to issue same-sex marriage licenses.

She revealed last week how she and her husband, Joel, met with the Pope in Washington.

She said: 'I put my hand out and he reached and he grabbed it, and I hugged him and he hugged me. And he said, 'Thank you for your courage.'

'He told me before he left: "Stay strong". That was a great encouragement. Just knowing that the pope is on track with what we're doing, it kind of validates everything to have someone of that stature'.

She added: 'I never thought I would meet the Pope. 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.'

At the end of the meeting, which was reportedly conducted in English, Davis says the pontiff handed her and her husband rosaries. She planned to give hers to her mother, who is a Catholic.