He pioneered Eastern Christian and Assyrian Chaldean literary research and made major contributions to the publication of manuscript texts.

In 1878, he returned to Lebanon and taught Arabic Literature at the Jesuit Saint Joseph College in Beirut for 10 years.

Those extended European stays allowed him to acquire the academic methodologies that helped him in his later works.

Finally in 1894, he settled in Beirut, Lebanon, where he continued his academic career at Université Saint-Joseph.

Famous Turkish poet Mehmet Akif Ersoy said that his work "Majani al-Adab" can be used in teaching Arabic.