I recently interviewed Neale Donald Walsh, bestselling author of Conversations with God, about his new book The Essential Path: Making the Daring Decision to Be Who You Truly Are. In The Essential Path, Neale identifies the biggest problem we face, individually and collectively, in the world at large today: We are increasing plagued by alienation. For instance, we seem to live in an “us against them” world, finding ourselves divided across political, economic, social, and spiritual lines. Society is being torn apart right before our eyes, separating us from our friends and even loved ones, from our hopes and dreams, and from so much that gives meaning and value to our lives. We are turning against each other, rather than to each other, just when we need each other the most.

Walsch examines these problems and then asks: Is it possible that there is something we don’t fully understand about life, about ourselves, and about God, which would change everything. With The Essential Path, he offers a resounding “yes,” inviting us to rethink the very definition of humanity. Throughout the book, he explores why things are the way they are on Earth today, when our biggest problems arose, what has blocked us from the obvious solution, and how we can dissolve the problem, virtually overnight.

During our interview, Walsch answers questions with specific and practical answers about how we can respond to the alienation and social problems we face today. For example, he talks about how to have a conversation with friends, family and coworkers about political and social issues when we disagree with that person’s political stance. He also offers specific solutions to economic and social issues related to homelessness, feeding the hungry, health care, mass shootings, and taxes. I was particularly struck and moved when he shared his personal experience of what it was like for him when he was homeless. He shared with me what it was like for him when he was homeless and asked people for money so that he would be able to buy himself a meal to eat. Hearing him talk about the challenges that people who are homeless face helped me have more compassion and a deeper understanding of people who are homeless and for humanity. We also spent some time talking about the current presidential election and presidential candidate Marianne Williamson.

Additionally, during our conversation, Walsch talks about how to apply spiritual principles to political issues. More specifically, Walsch explains the importance of connecting to our spiritual being while also taking care of our physical needs. He states that it is important for those in power and who have influence to connect to their spiritual being because they have the ability to share their wealth and influence policy that affect those who have less money and power in the world.

Throughout the interview, I was touched and moved by Walsch’s conviction, passion, and specific advice and solutions to complex problems. Many self-help and spiritual authors avoid talking about social, political, and economic problems. However, Walsch does not shy away from these issues. Instead he offers clear and specific guidance about how we can address these problems both collectively as a society at large and as individuals in our daily interactions, conversations, and choices we all face throughout our lives. Walsch’s solutions, as well as his personal experiences related to these issues, offer all of us hope, inspiration, and practical guidance.

You can listen to the entire audio interview by pressing the play button below. It is also available to download on Spiritual Media Blog’s iTunes Podcast by clicking here.