Community members light candles and offer prayers, affirming unity against terrorism and extremism.

LIVONIA — Members of the Jordanian and Arab American communities gathered at St. Mary Orthodox Church on Sunday evening for a candlelight vigil honoring the victims of the Oct. 23 terrorist attack on mourners at St. George Greek Orthodox Church in Hamoud, in Jordan’s Karak governorate.

Held under the theme “In remembrance … in prayer … in unity”, the gathering brought together Christian and Muslim prayers in solidarity with the victims’ families and the wounded, affirming Jordanians’ unity against terrorism and extremism.

The attack killed nine people and wounded 34, according to the official toll, turning a funeral gathering into a scene of bloodshed that shook Jordan.

Among those attending was Odie Fakhouri, honorary consul of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan in Michigan and CEO of America’s Community Council (ACC), alongside clergy, community leaders and representatives of local organizations.

Nancy Hannoush, president of the St. Mary’s Parish Council, welcomed attendees and offered condolences to the Jordanian people. Father George Shalhoub helped host and coordinate the gathering, bringing clergy and community members together under the church’s roof.

Participating organizations included the Jordanian American association in Michigan, JACA; the American Jordanian Women Association, AJWA; the Jordanian American Business Council, JABC and the Jordanian American Heritage Association, JAHA.

“Karak’s pain is our pain”

In a keynote address, Fakhouri said community members had gathered “with hearts filled with sorrow” to pray for those killed, the wounded and families whose lives had changed forever.

“Across the distance between Michigan and Jordan, we feel this pain because Jordan remains a part of us wherever we live,” he said. “Its people are our people, its sorrow reaches our homes, and tonight, Karak’s pain is the pain of us all.”

Fakhouri thanked Shalhoub, the clergy and the St. Mary community for opening the church’s doors and providing a place “to grieve together, pray together and find strength in one another.” He also praised the participating Jordanian organizations for standing together.

He said Jordan, under King Abdullah II’s leadership, represents a model of religious freedom, peaceful coexistence and mutual respect.

“Jordanians are one,” he said, emphasizing that an attack on a church or mosque is an attack on all houses of worship.

The attackers “represent no sacred faith,” Fakhouri said, adding that their attempt to divide Jordanians had failed.

Addressing Jordan, he said, “Your sons and daughters abroad stand with you. Distance has never diminished our belonging. We carry your name with pride, your sorrow with love and your future with hope.”

Prayers across faiths

Imam Mohammad Mardini emphasized the sanctity of human life and houses of worship, saying religions call for peace, justice and equality.

The victims’ blood “became one blood in the house of God in Karak,” he said, describing the perpetrators as terrorists “seeking to terrorize humanity.” He then recited the Al-Fatiha for the victims.

“However great the distance, love of the homeland remains in the heart,” Father Fares Bqaeen said.

“Treachery knows no religion, sect or denomination,” he added. “In Jordan, we are all Jordanians before we are Christians or Muslims.”

Father Joseph Antypas, a priest at St. George Antiochian Orthodox Church in Troy, praised Shalhoub’s role in organizing the vigil. He said the voice of violence must not drown out reason and love, urging Christians and Muslims to strengthen their unity against violence.

In an emotional address, a man identified as Father Peter recalled a parishioner describing the attack’s toll as “nine martyrs and 10 million wounded”, referring to Jordan’s population.

The true toll, he said, was “nine martyrs and eight billion wounded, because this terrorist attack wounded all of humanity.”

Ahead Masarweh, president of the JACA, also addressed the vigil, expressing solidarity with the victims’ families and affirming Muslim-Christian unity against terrorism.

Nada Dalgamouni, a cultural outreach adviser at the International Institute of Metropolitan Detroit, conveyed the solidarity of the communities served by the institute. She also discussed an initiative bringing together children from different parts of Jordan to share its message as a homeland of peace.

The vigil concluded with prayers for the victims, the wounded and their families before participants left the church carrying candles.

“Our national unity is stronger than terrorism”

Masarweh told The Arab American News Jordanians in the United States and around the world stand together, Muslims and Christians, in rejecting terrorism and defending Jordan’s unity and security.

Jordan is a homeland “where the mosque and church stand side by side, and the call to prayer embraces the ringing of church bells,” he said.

“This mourning belongs to all Jordanians,” he added. “Our national unity is stronger than terrorism.”

Kayed Masarweh said the attack “strikes at Jordan’s social fabric and security,” emphasizing his rejection of terrorism in all its forms.

“Our country will remain resistant to extremism and a beacon of brotherhood,” he said, calling for opposition to hate speech and incitement.

“What hurts our people in Karak hurts us all, and our unity, Muslims and Christians, will remain stronger than every attempt at extremism and hatred,”Ikhlas Dababneh of the AJWA told The Arab American News.

Arrests and military response

Jordanian authorities announced the arrest of three suspects in the attack after tracking them to an abandoned house in the Karak governorate. A shootout preceded their capture, and authorities recovered weapons and ammunition.

The Royal Jordanian Air Force subsequently conducted strikes inside Syria, specifically in the Daraa governorate, under an operation called “Jordanian Deterrence.” The operation followed intelligence indicating links between the attackers and extremist groups in Syria.

The Jordanian government said the strikes targeted ISIS sites, infrastructure and a weapons depot, while Syrian sources reported civilian casualties.