Pope Pius XII

Pope Pius XII was like the captain of a huge ship, the Catholic Church, for almost 20 years! He was born a long, long time ago in Italy and his real name was Eugenio Pacelli. He became the Pope, which is the head of the Catholic Church, in 1939. That's the same year a really big war started! He was the Pope for a super long time, almost as long as you've been alive, and even longer!

Pope Pius XII was the Pope when the world was going through World War II. This was a very scary time. He tried to help people and keep the Vatican, where the Pope lives, neutral, which means not picking sides. He worked hard to make peace and help those who were suffering. It was like trying to be a calm voice in a very loud and stormy sea.

Even though the Vatican was neutral, Pope Pius XII did secret things to help people. He helped thousands of Jewish people and others who were in danger during the war. It was like he had a secret mission to save lives! He also talked to people who were trying to stop the bad guys. He was a very busy Pope!

Pope Pius XII made some really important decisions for the Catholic Church. He made a rule that said being a communist was not allowed for Catholics. He also made a special announcement about Mary, the mother of Jesus, which was a very big deal. He even thought that maybe humans evolved, which is like saying we changed over a very, very long time!