A Time for Burning

This Academy Award-winning 1966 documentary follows a white, middle-class church in Omaha, Nebraska, struggling to reach out to the African American population in that city.

A Time for Burning explores the complex emotions arising from the Church's effort to break down racial barriers, as congregants and the pastor of Augustana Lutheran Church wrestle with conflicting ideas about how and when to proceed. Some eagerly seek to cross the racial divide while others view the challenge with trepidation. Still others think the time is not right. Tension within the church walls builds to a wrenching conclusion that articulates the hurdles that we continue to face in this country in how to bridge critical divides and actualize the ethic of equality for all.

This groundbreaking film was used by the Harvard Business School as a case study for examining patterns of social change and chaplains will find A Time for Burning a riveting and very useful tool to mark how far this country has come over four decades and how far it has yet to go.