Jehovah’s Witnesses and others around the world were deeply affected by the mass shooting at a Kingdom Hall in Hamburg, Germany, on March 9, 2023. Brother Mark Sanderson, a member of the Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses; Brother Gajus Glockentin, a helper to the Publishing Committee; and members of the Central Europe Branch Committee traveled to Hamburg to comfort and shepherd our brothers and sisters. On March 25, a memorial service for the victims was held in a sports arena in the city. Those who viewed the touching program saw it as a display of the Bible’s power to comfort and support those who mourn. Many felt as one brother who survived the attack expressed: “We really felt embraced by Jehovah today.”

More than 3,300 attended the event in person. Over 90,000 connections were made to a live stream of the service.

In addition to our brothers and sisters, government officials and representatives of the emergency services attended. This included the First and Second Mayors of Hamburg, the President of the Hamburg City Parliament, the US Consul General of Hamburg, the Senator of Interior and Sports, the Head of the Senate Chancellery, the Hamburg Chief of Police, and the Vice President of Police.

The memorial service began with a Kingdom song played by a string ensemble composed of our brothers and sisters. Brother Joachim Szewczyk, a member of the Central Europe Branch Committee, served as the chairman. He introduced Brother Dirk Ciupek, also a member of the Branch Committee, who delivered the memorial talk. Afterward, Brother Ciupek introduced Brother Sanderson, who delivered a brief Bible discourse. Brother Ciupek then returned to the stage for the conclusion of the memorial talk. The memorial ended with a heartfelt prayer by Brother Glockentin and another Kingdom song.

During his talk, Brother Sanderson explained to the audience that God does not cause senseless tragedies. Instead, they are what the book of Ecclesiastes calls “unexpected events.” (Ecclesiastes 9:11) Brother Sanderson stated: “We should not look for some purpose in senseless acts or random tragedies . . . Our hope, our faith, our love can survive tragedy. They can rise above hatred and violence.” He also thanked the police, emergency services personnel, and the medical professionals involved in helping our brothers and sisters.

In his moving memorial discourse, Brother Ciupek said: “The attack on March 9 was not merely an attack on a few individual people. It was an attack on all of us. We have come here today to offer an answer to hatred and violence. It is an answer composed of love and compassion and empathy, an answer also of hope and faith. ‘Do not let yourself be conquered by the evil,’ we read in the Holy Scriptures, ‘but keep conquering the evil with the good.’ This is our determination. That is why we have come here today.”—Romans 12:21.

The audience shared an especially emotional moment when Brother Ciupek mentioned each victim by name, saying: “We have also come here to bid farewell, to commemorate, and to say goodbye to Stephan, to Sebastian, to James and Marie, to Stephanie, to Dan, and to our little Romy (the unborn child who was killed in the attack).” Addressing the surviving friends and family members in the audience, he said: “We also want to stand at your side, you dear relatives.”

During his inspiring conclusion, he mentioned specific traits of each victim that survivors will miss. Referencing Revelation 21:4, 5, he expressed: “Yes, we miss our dead. We mourn our dead. They will remain part of us. The day will come when our God will permanently heal the grief we feel now, because he will end it. . . . Death will be no more. That is the great vision of Christianity. That is our vision. Death can be defeated. Death does not have to speak the last word. The last word is spoken by God. . . . The last word in the lives of Stephan, Sebastian, James and Marie, Stephanie, Dan, and also of our little Romy, has not yet been spoken.”

After the memorial service concluded, some of the government officials made public statements. In separate speeches, the First Mayor of Hamburg, Dr. Peter Tschentscher, and the President of the Hamburg City Parliament, Mrs. Carola Veit, expressed their personal sympathy for the victims’ friends and families. Dr. Tschentscher stated that the survivors were “handling their grief and injuries with great courage” because of “their deep Christian faith.” He also read a letter of support written by the Federal President of Germany, Mr. Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

Many media outlets were present and reported on the service. A television crew member commented: “The kindness of all the people here is very impressive.” He explained: “We have been guests at many events, but we have never experienced anything like the atmosphere here or the manner and content of the speeches.”

A couple who survived the attack related: “It is so good to meditate on our hope and to go through the process of mourning while being surrounded by so many brothers.”

A brother in another congregation that meets in the Kingdom Hall where the attack occurred explained: “It’s been a long period of mourning. I came here just simply exhausted from that feeling of mourning. But it was an incredibly dignified event . . . There was an immense feeling of empathy that could be heard in all the statements from the brothers and also from the representatives of the public.”

The memorial service was a clear expression of Jehovah’s loving care. We know that “the Father of tender mercies and the God of all comfort” will continue to support all those deeply affected by the Hamburg shooting.—2 Corinthians 1:3.