Pope Francis ordered the return of the piece of wood, believed to be part of a manger Jesus once lay, to Bethlehem Sanctuary in Palestine.

The thumb-sized relic was ordered by the Pope to return to Bethlehem Sanctuary as a gift. Relics in elaborate carvings have been on display in the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore of Rome since the seventh century.

The relics were displayed in Jerusalem shortly before arriving at Bethlehem on November 30 and taken to St. Catherine's Church, next to the Christmas Church, where the alleged Jesus was born. The Church of the Nativity is one of the Basilica basilica in Bethlehem.

Some Christians believe that this piece of wood is part of the manger that Jesus lay after his birth. The administration of the Holy Land Terrae Sanctae said that Sophronius had given the Relic to Pope Theodore I more than 1,000 years ago.

Relics are on display at the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome, where many pilgrims around the world flock to each day to pay homage. Most of the manger is still in Rome, but the Vatican's return of the wood to Bethlehem is highly acclaimed by Christians.

"My heart is beating fast. I am really crying for joy at this event and also grateful to the Pope for the kindness he brought to Bethlehem," said Louisa Fleckenstein, a pilgrim guide to the Holy Land.

However, some people seem dissatisfied. "When we heard that the manger was coming back, we thought it was the whole manger," Shahin Hijazeen said.

The Vatican described the return of the relic as a gift from Pope Francis. Anton Salman, mayor of Bethlehem, told the Palestinian news agency Wafa that during a recent visit to the Vatican, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas asked the pope to return the relic.

The relic returned to coincide with the start of Advent, about 4 weeks before Christmas.

Christians make up only about 1% of the Palestinian population in the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem, but Bethlehem is a famous place for Christian pilgrims from around the world, especially at Christmas. Tens of thousands of Christian pilgrims are expected to visit the Holy Land this month.

Dr. Yisca Harani, Israel's Christian expert, described the return of the Relic as "a reversal of history". "A thousand years ago, Rome rushed to collect relics from the East to build a site to replace Jerusalem. Now, Rome is strong enough to be able to return the Relics to Jerusalem and Bethlehem," Harani said.

The manger relic was not the first religious item returned by the Pope. Earlier this year, the Pope brought some pieces of St. Peter's bones to the leaders of the Eastern Orthodox Church, saying the action was intended to bring Orthodox and Catholic churches together.