Susan Brown marked Mass on the island of Madeira before jumping into the Atlantic ocean to try to reach the cruise ship, the Marco Polo.
Another worshipper said that she had joined in the singing and praise at Sao Pedro Church and celebrating Holy Eucharist.
The woman's handbag acted as a buoyancy aid during the time she was stranded 1,600ft out at sea.
According to The Telegraph the timing of the church service does not match the events recalled by Susan Brown who appeared "very confused" when she got back to land.
She is a regular church-goer in her home village in Dorset, Fontmell Magna and a source told the paper she was being treated in a psychiatric unit.
Susan Brown's husband - who she thought to be on the cruise ship when it left without her, is expected to arrive soon, according to the source.
The 69-year-old, Michael Brown is believed to have flown home from Madeira alone.
It has been reported that the pair cut short their 32 day cruise after parting company.
Susan Brown was rescued by local fishermen, one said: "She seemed very pale and perturbed... It seemed her bag acted as a buoy.
"She had been in the water for hours and was very confused and pale, like a survivor from the Titanic film."
