This 2025 Jubilee Year marks the 1,700th anniversary of the First Ecumenical Council in Nicaea, which developed the Creed. To mark the occasion, the Archdiocese of Edmonton has launched “I Believe,” a catechesis series in partnership with St. Joseph’s College (University of Alberta) and Newman Theological College.
The “I Believe” series, livestreamed on the Archdiocese YouTube page, stems from the Archdiocese’s Pastoral Priorities focusing on three aspects of formation. One of the priorities is the formation of confident witnesses to the faith.
Father Matthew-Anthony Hysell’s presentation is the fifth in the seven-part Nicene Creed Series and will focus on the proposition from the Creed:
“I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified, who has spoken through the prophets.”
What is your interest in this topic? How does it align with your study interests?
When I studied for my M.A. at the Dominican School of Philosophy and Theology in Berkeley, my focus was the Creed of Nicaea, so the Profession of Faith is something I’ve become intimately familiar with. My doctoral research focused on the role of the Holy Spirit in the soul of Christ—what theologians call Pneumatic Christology—which led me to some surprising conclusions about the role (or non-role) of the Holy Spirit in ecclesial administration.
There is definitely a pastoral dimension to my academic interest in the Holy Spirit, especially since Pope Pius XII described the Holy Spirit as the “soul of the Church.” St. Thomas Aquinas goes so far as to say that if Christ is the “Head” of the Church, then the Holy Spirit is the “Heart” of the Church. But as Church, we cannot presume upon the Spirit’s activity; we must deliberately surrender ourselves to the Paraclete’s lordship.
What are the main points you expect to cover?
The postconciliar Liturgy—though dating from the middle of the second century—prays thrice daily, “…on earth as it is in heaven.” The Church’s mission, as the Council taught, is that “the Church has a single intention: that God’s kingdom may come, and that the salvation of the whole human race may come to pass” (Gaudium et Spes, 45).
The Christian vocation is not merely to “get to heaven” after we die, but to bring heaven to earth—and this can be done only with the aid of the Holy Spirit (or, perhaps, by the Holy Spirit with our aid!). The Greek language of the Creed holds a surprise as to how Christians can be instruments of the Holy Spirit: “…in one God, Maker of heaven and earth…and in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of Life” (there is a parallelism here).
I will then turn our attention to how this helps us actualize the graces of Confirmation—which is not a “membership badge,” but rather an empowerment to realize our daily prayer: “…on earth as it is in heaven.” In so doing, I hope to show that the doctrine of the Holy Spirit is not a collection of grandiose ideas about God but a rubric for faithfulness to the Lord Jesus Christ, who came to inaugurate the Kingdom of God and to call us to be His viceregents in bringing about the Kingdom’s ultimate fullness.
What do you hope people take away from your presentation?
The great Fr. Hans Urs von Balthasar observed that an exaggerated Marian devotionalism mutated out of a lack of awareness of the Holy Spirit’s personhood and presence. In fact, the Holy Spirit is often called “the forgotten member of the Trinity.” Yet, as St. Seraphim of Sarov once said, “the acquisition of the Holy Spirit is the goal of the Christian life.”
My great hope is for the People of God in Edmonton to be positively challenged by this question: You have the Holy Spirit, but does the Holy Spirit have you?
Relatedly, there is a sense of lethargy in many sectors of the Church—as seen in the revolving door of ecclesial renewal programmes and revitalization projects—which nonetheless point to a real need for revival. What strikes me about many of these efforts is that they lack a demand for surrender to the Holy Spirit’s sovereignty. Yet this is precisely what the Church means when she proclaims, “…in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of Life.” The Holy Spirit vivifies only insofar as the Spirit is sovereign.
In what ways will your presentation help to form Catholics as confident witnesses for their faith?
I’m afraid that many Catholics tend to think of witnessing the faith in terms of marketing strategies — or worse, as handing out an information package — when in fact Jesus said, “You will be clothed with power from on high when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be My witnesses…” (Acts 1:8). Confident witness is not about technique but about power; faith is not mere assent but Kingdom allegiance. Only by yielding to the indwelling Holy Spirit can we boldly (cf. 2 Tim 1:7) proclaim that “Jesus is Lord!” (1 Cor 12:3).
Witness arises from experiencing God—not merely from acquaintance or association with God—and this experience is possible only with the help of the Holy Spirit. My goal is to bring this into high relief by explaining “Third-Article Theology.”
Why is the Creed important today?
Because the Holy Spirit gave us the Creed!
The fourth century was a period of many growing pains for the Church. Though many doctrinal questions have since been settled, new ones continue to arise. Surprisingly, there is a perennial sense of the Creed’s relevance: new questions are constantly being resolved by ancient answers. The trick is to look at the many wordplays and nuances hidden in the Creed’s plain sight.
As Michelle Moran once said to a group of us priests gathered at the Lateran Basilica in Rome in 2015, “With the Holy Spirit, there is always something new!” When the Holy Spirit gives gifts, they are never outdated. The Creed is one such gift (cf. Rom 11:29).
We need only yield to grace, open our minds and hearts, and be ready to be surprised by the Creed’s perennial newness and lasting relevance.
Watch the I Believe Series from the beginning
About Fr. Matthew-Anthony Hysell:
Fr. Matthew-Anthony Hysell, a presbyter of the Archdiocese of Edmonton, was born in Muskegon County, Michigan. Deaf since his toddler years, he grew up bilingual (English and American Sign Language). After finishing high school, he began formation and undergraduate studies in New York City (B.A. Philosophy, 2002), followed by graduate studies in theology with the Dominicans in Berkeley (M.A., 2007), and later attended Newman Theological College (M.Th., 2009).
Archbishop Richard Smith invited him to discern ordained ministry, so he enrolled at St. Joseph Seminary for two years of further formation and was ordained to the ministerial priesthood in 2012. After serving at St. Theresa’s Parish, Corpus Christi Parish, and St. Mark’s Community of the Deaf, Fr. Hysell was sent to Dominican University College in Ottawa to pursue civil and canonical doctorates in theology. His specialization was the Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit in the soul of Christ, especially in the biblical commentaries of St. Thomas Aquinas, under the direction of the Very Rev. Maxime Allard, OP, STM.
Upon returning to Edmonton in 2021, Fr. Hysell resumed chaplaincy with St. Mark’s and was appointed pastor of St. Emeric Catholic Hungarian Parish and lecturer in theology at Newman Theological College.
Fr. Hysell is also a professed Dominican brother, National Chaplain to the International Catholic Deaf Association–Canadian Section, and the archiepiscopal liaison for the Catholic Renewal Services of Edmonton. In his spare time, he enjoys gardening, reading, and walking. He is currently pursuing a professional Doctor of Practical Theology at McMaster Divinity College, researching how to better bridge theology and preaching.