Having full awareness that the lives of the Saints have always been the daily nourishment of all Orthodox believers, after the Holy Scripture, the Holy Monastery of Simonopetra in Mount Athos has decided to publish, first in French and subsequently in English, a contemporary translation of the Synaxarion, for the needs of the worldwide Orthodox mission.

This laborious yet necessary service has been undertaken by the most reverend Hieromonk Fr. Makarios Simonopetritis, a linguist and a devoted scholar of hagiological topics. From the outset, it was evident that this work could not be limited to a simple translation or adaptation of the Synaxarion of Constantinople.

In order for this hagiology to meet the requirements of the contemporary, and especially the Western reader, and for the even more universal character of the Orthodox Church, a revision of the texts based on the most authentic hagiological sources was necessary.

This time-consuming work allowed not only for the correction of certain errors that had crept into the Synaxarion over time but also for the completion of many concise biographies, and for the addition of commemorations of Byzantine Saints who had not yet found their place in the classical Synaxaria.

To give a truly pan-Orthodox character to this collection, the Saints of all the local canonical Orthodox Churches (Russia, Serbia, Romania, Georgia, Bulgaria, etc.) were included, as well as the recently recognized Saints of the Orthodox Churches.

Along the way, the translation work evolved into an original composition of a true New Synaxarion, which today appears to be the most comprehensive and up-to-date Orthodox hagiological collection, as it includes all the Saints recognized by the Church up to the year 2000.