''A Time for Burning'' is a 1966 American documentary film that explores the attempts of the minister of Augustana Lutheran Church in

Omaha, Nebraska Omaha ( ) is the List of cities in Nebraska, most populous city in the U.S. state of Nebraska. It is located in the Midwestern United States along the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's List of United S ...

, to persuade his all-white congregation to reach out to "

Negro In the English language, the term ''negro'' (or sometimes ''negress'' for a female) is a term historically used to refer to people of Black people, Black African heritage. The term ''negro'' means the color black in Spanish and Portuguese (from ...

Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

s in the city's north side. The film was directed by

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

filmmaker William C. Jersey and was nominated for Best Documentary Feature in the 1967

Academy Awards The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence in ...

Summary

The film was commissioned by the Lutheran Church in America. The film was shot in 1965 in "

cinéma vérité Cinéma vérité (, , ) is a style of documentary filmmaking developed by Edgar Morin and Jean Rouch, inspired by Dziga Vertov's theory about '' Kino-Pravda''. It combines improvisation with use of the camera to unveil truth or highlight subje ...

" style. It chronicles the relationship between the minister, L. William Youngdahl (1927-2012), and his white and black Lutheran parishioners. Youngdahl was the son of former Minnesota governor and federal judge Luther Youngdahl. The film includes a meeting between Youngdahl and a black barber, Ernie Chambers, who tells Youngdahl that his

Jesus Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

is "contaminated." At one point another Omaha Lutheran minister, Walter E. Rowoldt of Luther Memorial Lutheran Church, says, "This one lady said to me, 'pastor', she said, 'I want them to have everything I have, I want God to bless them as much as he blesses me, but', she says, 'pastor, I just can't be in the same room with them, it just bothers me'." Rowoldt and other ministers also discuss the concern that blacks moving into white neighborhoods will decrease property values. The attempt to reach out does not succeed and Youngdahl resigns as minister of the church.

Legacy

In 2005, ''A Time for Burning'' was selected for preservation in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

National Film Registry The National Film Registry (NFR) is the United States National Film Preservation Board's (NFPB) collection of films selected for preservation (library and archival science), preservation, each selected for its cultural, historical, and aestheti ...

by the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...

as "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". Chambers completed law school and was elected to the

Nebraska Legislature The Nebraska Legislature (also called the Unicameral) is the legislative branch, legislature of the U.S. state of Nebraska. The Legislature meets at the Nebraska State Capitol in Lincoln, Nebraska, Lincoln. With 49 members, known as "senators ...

in 1970. He served as Nebraska's 11th District's representative until 2008, when a new term-limit law was implemented. He was reelected in 2012 and served until 2021. Chambers is the longest-serving state senator in Nebraska history.

References

External links

*''A Time for Burning'' essa

by Ed Carter at

*''A Time for Burning'' essay by Daniel Eagan i

� America's Film Legacy: The Authoritative Guide to the Landmark Movies in the National Film Registry, A&C Black, 2010 , pages 621-622 *
Augustana Lutheran Church
website * {{DEFAULTSORT:Time For Burning, A History of North Omaha, Nebraska Christianity in Omaha, Nebraska 1966 films Documentary films about the civil rights movement United States National Film Registry films American documentary films Documentary films about racism in the United States Documentary films about Christianity in the United States Sponsored films African-American history in Omaha, Nebraska Ethnic groups in Omaha, Nebraska Culture of Omaha, Nebraska 20th-century Lutheranism 1966 documentary films 1966 in Christianity Documentary films about Nebraska 1960s English-language films 1960s American films 1965 in Nebraska Lutheranism in Nebraska English-language documentary films

Summary

Legacy

See also

References

External links