On the day of remembrance of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Mary Magdalene on August 4, the Diveyevo monastery celebrates a patronal feast. The house church at the Hegumenia’s Residence was consecrated in honor of this all-praised disciple of Christ, one of the myrrh-bearing women who was first among men vouchsafed to see the risen Lord Jesus Christ and announced the good news: “I saw the Lord! He rose from the dead!”

Maria (Ushakova), the first hegumenia of Diveyevo, received the name of the Equal-to-the-Apostles Mary Magdalene at her tonsure and the church in the hegumenia’s living quarters was consecrated in honor of her heavenly patron.

Venerable Seraphim of Sarov prophesied about Hegmenia Maria: “You truly will have a righteous mother.” The elder of Sarov had once told a sister from the Diveyevo community: “Remember, matushka, the monastery will flourish under the twelfth abbess.” Father Seraphim pointed to matushka Maria (Ushakova) as being a chosen and a pre-destined one who would come to preserve and restore the chosen lot of the Mother of God. Hegumenia Maria devoted her whole life to the fulfillment of the Queen of Heaven’s will and the protection of Venerable Seraphim’s commandments.

Her time at the helm of the monastery (1862-1904) is known as the years of its prosperity and success in material and spiritual life. The monastery’s Typikon and a prayer rule were established in strict accordance with the instructions the Queen of Heaven left to venerable father. A total number of monastics grew to a thousand while the construction of the Trinity Cathedral, the bell-tower, hegumenia’s quarters, the refectory church to the Holy Righteous Prince Alexander Nevsky Church was completed with about thirty other structures and residential quarters.

Hegumenia Maria, enlightened by rare intellectual qualities, will power, and remarkable spiritual traits, well experienced in life’s matters and great trials, commanded not only love and respect but also reverential devotion from the nuns and everyone who came to know her. She irresistibly attracted and charmed people’s hearts by leading the righteous life full of deep humility. She would be genuinely surprised when visitors were admiring the results of her work: “Why is it my work? Father Seraphim is the one who takes care of everything here according to his will,” writer Y. Poselyanin recalled about matushka.

Hegumenia Maria was a faithful keeper of father Seraphim’s precepts. Thanks to her, the memories about him by elder nuns who personally knew him were put to paper that preserved true and authentic words by father Seraphim in addition to their own life’s experiences and how they served him.

The first hegumenia of the Diveyevo monastery rests in the Lord outside the altar of the Trinity Cathedral.

On August 4, the festive services were held at the Church of the Equal-to-the-Apostles Mary Magdalene, Trinity, and Transfiguration Cathedrals. After the liturgy, a traditional procession with the cross walked around the monastery and along the Holy Kanavka. A remembrance litya service was served at the grave of hegumenia Maria.