Yet other Christian leaders remain opposed to her presence at Saddleback.
"What Saddleback is doing is helping raise her profile as a legitimate presidential candidate in the eyes of evangelical Christians, and I think that is a huge error," said Tim Wildmon, president of the American Family Association, according to the group's own news service OneNewsNow.
Clinton was the only one out of six presidential candidates invited by Pastor Warren to appear in person at the summit. All other invited candidates appeared via satellite.
Last year, Democratic Senator Barack Obama's appearance at the Saddleback Aids summit caused significantly larger uproar than Clinton's appearance this year.
Pro-life groups organised protests against Obama and demanded Warren rescind his invitation for the pro-abortion senator to appear on the church stage.
Warren responded then - as he did again this year to opposition to Clinton's invitation - that although he may differ with people over certain issues, he and Christians should work together on the common cause of helping millions of people living with HIV and Aids.
Experts noted that Clinton had much to gain from a favourable reception at the Saddleback conference.
An August Pew Research Center survey found that 58 per cent of white evangelical Protestants who identified themselves as Democrat or leaning towards that party had an unfavourable impression of Clinton, according to Pew research director Scott Keeter.
A good reception at the influential megachurch might help Clinton make inroads among the evangelical voters.
"Senator Clinton has the boldness to broaden her base...it shows she's done her homework and she's open to new ideas," said Vivian Berryhill, president and founder of the National Coalition of Pastors' Spouses, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.
"We're very religious in this country, and these are the people who helped elect [President] Bush," Berryhill said as she motioned around the Saddleback worship hall. "So for her to come here is a gutsy move."
The third annual Global Summit on AIDS and the Church concluded on Friday, and prepared the ground for the first-ever Youth Summit on Saturday - World AIDS Day - also hosted by Saddleback Church.
