Great fun and good learning

The annual JesWeb communications conference took place in Budapest, Hungary from Monday 5 May to Thursday 9 May 2024. 18 communications staff, Jesuit and lay, from Hungary, Spain, Portugal, Rome, Nigeria, India, Slovenia, Croatia, Poland, and Ireland gathered in the Cardonner Hotel, in a small village over 40km from the capital. The hotel is owned by the Jesuits and run by an independent company. The profit secured goes to fund various Jesuit works in Hungary including a multi-faceted project with people from the Roma community.

Close by is the Jesuit retreat centre – Manresa. Participants attended Mass in the chapel there, in a space that was once the private cinema room of the communist mayor of Budapest.

Each day began with Mass or communal prayer. After breakfast, the group gathered for input, sharing and practical communication exercises. There were workshops on assisting with vocations promotion, working with the media, making ‘newsworthy’ stories, communications and fundraising, and, from the Curia in Rome, the new Jesuit media photo archive, and Pilgrimage app.

There was time also for more leisurely activities such as a walk in the nearby forest up to a viewing platform that allowed for a panoramic view of the Danube river and surrounding countryside. Each night ended with a social gathering where wine, cheese, chocolates, and other produce brought by participants from their native countries, was shared and enjoyed almost as much as the conversations.

At lunchtime on Wednesday the group returned to Budapest for the day. They were given a tour of the Jesuit church and provincialate and visited the JRS centre there where several Ukrainian refugees gather daily for food and support.

Wednesday afternoon was a ‘get to know Hungary better’ time with a guided walking or cycling tour of Budapest on offer. Both trips allowed participants to see many of the beautiful parks and buildings in the city, including the parliament, basilica, and controversial but striking Museum of Ethnography.

Pat Coyle, Director of Irish Jesuit Communications, said that the informal sharing was just as important as the formal workshops. “It was lovely to hear from the people in communications about the innovative work they are doing, and the challenges they face and how they deal with them,” she said. “I realised how much we have in common, in terms of media challenges and opportunities, but I also got some valuable insights regarding how different the ‘Catholic climate’ is, depending on the country or indeed the continent we come from.

On Wednesday evening, the Jesuits in Budapest hosted a dinner for everyone in the Loyola Café, attached to the provincialate headquarters. Two of their Hungarian hosts had traveled to a winery to purchase some bottles so that participants could savour the white wines of the region and learn about the production process. “It was a great way to mark the final dinner with lovely food and a small glass of the appropriate wine for each course,” says Pat, adding, “The hospitality of the Hungarian team was really heartfelt and helped us all bond very easily as a community of co-workers. All in all, it was a memorable conference – great fun and good learning.”