Michael Emerson Quotes

I want to be a partner with business, labor, civic leaders, foundations, other churches so that we can work together... If I can talk to all of these people and have something in common, maybe I can get them to see that they also have something in common with each other when we come together.

We are not taught "love thy neighbor unless their skin is a different color from yours " or "love thy neighbor unless they don't make money as you do" or "love thy neighbor unless they don't share your belies." We are taught "love thy neighbor". No exceptions. We are all in this together - every single one of us. And the only way we are going to survive as a society is through compassion. A Great Community does not mean we all think the same things or do the same things. It simply means we are willing to work together and are willing to love despite our differences.

I grew up in a neighborhood with blacks and Puerto Ricans and Italians, the whole gamut, so conveying unity has always meant a lot to me.

I just want to play for Hindus and Muslims that sit together. That's all I want to do.

We are a country that does better when we do debate and air our differences.

One thing that education can do is it can provide us with an opportunity to understand one another better, and so while I've spent a lot of my time in the world of politics, I've always felt that it is really not politics that will solve this for us.

There is tolerance within our community, Muslims and Christians living together in harmony. These traditional values we have should be enhanced.

It is time to stop waiting for someone to save us. It is time to face the truth of our situation - that we're all in this together, that we all have a voice - and figure out how to mobilize the hearts and minds of everyone in our workplaces and communities.

Tolerance is the first principle of community; it is the spirit which conserves the best that all men think.

How do we create a harmonious society out of so many kinds of people? The key is tolerance -- the one value that is indispensable in creating community.

I think when we get to a place that this is not the story, that everyone's story is a part of the story, then we can say this has changed. Until then, these are steps to change if they're consistent.

All I can do is share what I'm thinking - and learn from others.

I think the church needs – I think this is the world we are living in and we need to affirm people wherever they are.

We are not a nation that says 'don't ask, don't tell.' We are a nation that says 'out of many, we are one.'

Everywhere I go, I see all kinds of people at my shows - conservatives, liberals, new-agers, teen-agers, old pensioners. And for those people to have something in common is real interesting to me.

And it turns out that tribes, not money, not factories, that can change our world, that can change politics, that can align large numbers of people. Not because you force them to do something against their will. But because they wanted to connect.

You make yourself broad. You make yourself appealing. 'Hey, y'all, I'm cool with everybody.' That's my message.

You've got to reach a hand of friendship across the aisle and across philosophies in this country.

The black church will accept anybody.

When the youth of America gets together, amazing things happen.

The church must constantly promote dialogue.

You need a lot of different types of people to make the world better.

We can be more inclusive.

One thing that stands out throughout the entire year was that in South Dakota we are much more united than we are divided. Now the divided part creates news, but the united part is what moves us forward.

If you can sing together, you can live together.