Born in 1891 in Riga, Latvia to devout parents, Elizaveta Pilenko (as she was originally known) lived what many would consider a turbulent life. She left the faith as a young child after the death of her father, was involved in Russian politics during the communist regime, and went through multiple marriages. This, however, all changed with the death of her daughter, an event which completely changed Elizaveta’s outlook on life. She returned to the faith and moved to Paris in 1923, becoming a nun in 1932 and given the name Maria. But rather than remaining in a monastery, she opened a house of hospitality for those in need irrespective of their ethnicity or religion.

With the onset of World War Two, Mother Maria redoubled her efforts to care for those affected by the war. She was able to smuggle many Jewish children imprisoned in the Velodrome d’Hiver to safety by hiding them in garbage bins. However, this eventually led to Mother Maria making the ultimate sacrifice. In 1943, she was arrested by the Gestapo and taken to the Ravensbruck concentration camp. On Good Friday of 1945, Mother Maria took the place of a fellow prisoner in the gas chambers, thereby gaining the crown of martyrdom. She was canonised by the Ecumenical Patriarchate on January 18, 2004.

Her life is a true testament to the individual and specific plan that Christ has for each and every one of us, no matter how turbulent our pasts may be. May God bless us to experience and also show the love Mother Maria had for all those she cared for, a love that was “to the end and without exception”.