Paulus Assemani

Title: Paulus Assemani
Description: Mgr Paul Assemani (1879–1958) was a Syrian priest and scholar. He was born in 1879 in Hasroun, Lebanon, and joined the Petit Séminaire of Ain Waraqa for his studies. He was ordained a priest in 1900. Mgr Assemani taught Arabic at the Patriarchal Seminary and was responsible for the Arabic section of the Chancery. Between 1914 and 1918, he returned to Lebanon and, on 8 September 1919, was appointed parish priest of the Holy Family Church in Ramallah, Palestine, where he served until 1921. In April 1921, he resumed his position as an Arabic language professor at the Patriarchal Seminary until 1933. In 1933, he became the Procurator of the Maronite Patriarchate and Rector of the Maronite Roman College in Rome. He celebrated his golden priesthood jubilee in 1950 at Saint Maron Church in Rome. Mgr Assemani was also a Commander of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre. He passed away on 5 November 1958 in Rome after falling in an elevator shaft at the age of 80. Mgr Assemani translated approximately ten works and published a history of the Assemani family as well as a history of Syriac literature.