The 2005-06 recipients of the John and Blanche Rodgers Scholarship have been named. Four students preparing for ordained ministry in the Anglican Mission in The Americas will share a scholarship of $10,000 as they study and prepare to answer God’s call to full-time ministry.

The Office of Clergy Credentialing announced that Michael J. McDonald of Ambridge, PA, Emmanuel K. Mutangana of Silver Spring, MD, R. Michael Allen of Wheaton, IL, and Benjamin C. Reed of Minneapolis, MN, are to receive the award.


Michael McDonald, his wife, Heather, and two young daughters recently moved to Ambridge, PA, so that Mike could begin the Master of Divinity program at Trinity Episcopal School for Ministry. Prior to this move, Mike served as full-time youth pastor at the Church of the Holy Spirit (AMiA) in the Woodlands, TX. Mike discerned the call to ministry after several years of work as an engineer. When asked to reflect upon the scholarship and this new season at seminary, Mike had this to say: “This generous gift is very encouraging! What a great confirmation of the call to pursue seminary and future ordained ministry! We came to seminary trusting God to pay for what he orders, and through the help of some generous believers, he has provided!”


The second recipient of the Rodgers Scholarship is Emmanuel Mutangana, from the Church of the Resurrection (AMiA) in Washington, DC. He will begin his studies at Reformed Theological Seminary in the fall. A Rwandan by birth, Emmanuel formerly led worship at the Anglican Cathedral in Kigali under the supervision of Archbishop Emmanuel Kolini. After graduating from Daystar University in Nairobi, Kenya, Emmanuel came to the United States to study the Bible and missions at Bethany College in Minneapolis. He then had the opportunity to intern in Washington, DC, with the prestigious Witherspoon Fellowship of the Family Research Council. “I’m so grateful! This is a tremendous blessing! I can only say thank you ever so much.”

For a second year in a row, Ben Reed is a recipient of the Rodgers Scholarship. Ben and his wife Nikki are founding members of the Church of the Cross (AMiA) in Hopkins, MN, since leaving their hometown of Indianapolis. Ben and Nikki discerned the call to ministry early on, and Ben entered Bethel Seminary (St. Paul, MN) in 2004. “I feel very honored to receive the Rodgers Scholarship for a second year in a row. This scholarship is one of many ways AMiA seeks to encourage seminary students as we work to discern God’s call on our lives. It is wonderful to know you are supported not only by your local congregation but also by the entire Anglican Mission,” observes Ben.

The fourth and final recipient of the 2005 Rodgers award is Michael Allen of Wheaton, IL. In May, Michael received a Masters in Theology from Wheaton College, and has now begun work on a doctorate in Systematic Theology at the same institution. Michael recently married the former Emily Petersen of South Carolina, and the two are members of the AMiA Church of the Great Shepherd (Wheaton, IL). Says Michael, “Emily and I are enormously blessed by the generosity of those who support us in this time of preparation for a life of ministry. Many thanks!”

The John and Blanche Rodgers Endowment Scholarship Fund was established in 2004 through the Office of Clergy Credentialing to support theological education for prospective clergy in the Anglican Mission in The Americas. The fund is a gift from generous friends who have grown in grace through the ministry of John and Blanche Rodgers. Recipients of the scholarship are considered first upon a genuine profession of Christian faith and a heartfelt commitment to the mission and doctrine of the Anglican Mission in The Americas. The second consideration is a demonstrated vocation to ministry as a presbyter in the Anglican Mission, and a disciplined life as a promising pastor-theologian, as exemplified by the Rt. Rev. John Rodgers. In choosing between worthy recipients, financial need is also a consideration.

Bishop John and Blanche Rodgers have influenced generations of pastors and theological students through their gifted, warm and godly mentoring. They said of the award, "…we are pleased, nay thrilled, that it will be available to help qualified recipients to prepare for ordination and even doctoral study. We would never have been able to go to the University of Basel without the help of others and it is exciting to think that some who would otherwise not be able to prepare for the ministry to which God has called them will be able to do so now".

For more information on the Rodgers Scholarship contact the Office of Clergy Credentialing of the Anglican Mission in The Americas at 301.270.4178, or by email at leadership@anglicanmissioninamerica.org.

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