Rest in Power: Remembering Rev. Jesse Jackson, Sr.
FEBRUARY 17, 2026
McCormick Theological Seminary gives thanks for the life and witness of Jesse Jackson Sr.—a towering figure of the Civil Rights Movement, a son of the Black Church, and a relentless advocate for justice rooted in faith. His ministry stretched far beyond sanctuary walls, carrying the Gospel into streets, courtrooms, classrooms, and communities hungry for dignity. In doing so, he embodied a conviction shared by generations of prophetic leaders: that justice is not separate from faith, but one of its clearest expressions.
Formed in the movement alongside Martin Luther King Jr., Rev. Jackson helped translate the moral vision of the Beloved Community into sustained public action. Through organizing, preaching, and the founding of Rainbow/PUSH Coalition, he insisted that the work of civil rights was not a moment but a mandate—an ongoing call to confront poverty, racism, and exclusion with courage and collective responsibility.
Rev. Jackson stood firmly in the tradition of a church that sings while marching and prays while organizing. His life testified to a theology with feet—a faith that shows up wherever people struggle to breathe free. Again and again, he reminded the nation that the prophetic voice of the Black Church is not confined to Sunday morning; it is meant to shape public life, challenge systems of inequity, and proclaim hope where despair would otherwise take root.
His ministry echoes the enduring words of the prophet Micah:
“What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with your God?” — Micah 6:8
For decades, Rev. Jackson called communities to conscience. He challenged the powerful, encouraged the marginalized, and lifted a vision of shared humanity grounded in faith. He belonged to a lineage of pastors who understood that the Black Church is not only a place of worship—it is a wellspring of resilience, courage, and social transformation.
Over those same decades, McCormick participated in many of the justice-oriented networks, gatherings, and conversations in which Rev. Jackson labored — standing alongside partners such as the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition and the broader Operation PUSH faith network. His witness intersected with the kind of public theology McCormick has long sought to form: ministry that engages the world as it is while proclaiming the world as it can yet be.
We honor his legacy. We carry the work forward.
“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” — 2 Timothy 4:7
In the language of our elders, we do not simply say farewell—we say, rest in power. As the church mothers would remind us, “Servants of God never die—they just come home.”
May he now rest from his labor, and may the work he helped advance continue in all who believe that faith must still speak, still march, and still love in the face of injustice.