Added to the National Film Registry in 2005.

Commissioned by Lutheran Film Associates to display the church’s progressive views on civil rights issues, Barbara Connell and William C. Jersey’s Oscar-nominated film, A Time for Burning, takes a cinéma vérité approach to documenting the white, Omaha-based Augustana Lutheran Church, whose progressive pastor L. William Youngdahl preaches about integration in attempts to unite with a neighboring Black congregation. At the time, this cinematic experiment stoked so much controversy the project was nearly halted after protests from Nebraskan Lutheran leadership. A vital document underscoring the concept that “change is hard,” this powerful film is also the very catalyst for change needed to showcase a movement’s potential.