The Custodian of the Holy Land, Father Francesco Patton holds a wooden relic reputed to be part of Jesus's manger, upon arrival at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem in the Israeli-occupied West Bank November 30, 2019. REUTERS/Mussa Qawasma
BETHLEHEM, West Bank (Reuters) - A fragment of wood reputed to be from the manger where Jesus was laid after his humble birth arrived in Bethlehem as a gift from the Vatican on Saturday, kicking off Christmas season at the town revered as the place of Jesus' birth.
The wood piece, just a few centimetres (inches) long, was once kept in the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome. It was handed over earlier this week to the custodian of the Bethlehem church, who said it brought "great honour to believers and pilgrims in the area".
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