God called Bishop W. Darin Moore to preach and teach the Gospel of Christ so that others may come to know the Lord, to love His Word and be equipped for the ministry of reconciliation. He has come to embody John Maxwell's essentials of leadership - vision, ability, and integrity.
The journey towards spiritual and academic preparation would take him from the halls of Livingstone College, Salisbury, NC, where he served as President of the Student Government Association, National President of the Pre-Alumni Association of the United Negro College Fund, to Purchase College, where he received a Bachelor's degree in Psychology and onto Yale University's School of Divinity. He completed his Master's of Divinity Degree at United Theological Seminary in Dayton, OH.
Pastoral assignments have included Clarksville and Morning Star AME Zion Churches, Monroe, NC, Mt. Olivet AME Zion Church, Greensboro, NC and Jones Tabernacle AME Zion Church, Indianapolis, IN. While in Greensboro, he served on the County Commission on Children and Youth. In Indianapolis, Bishop Moore served two terms as President of the Board of Directors for the Greater Indianapolis Church Federation and was the Presiding Elder of the Indianapolis District for the AME Zion Church. From 1993 until his elevation to the episcopacy in 2012, Bishop Moore served as pastor of Greater Centennial African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church in Mt. Vernon, NY, the same place where he grew up, worshipped with his family, received Christ and began in ministry. Under his dynamic leadership the congregation grew from 600 to more than 5500 members. While pastor of Greater Centennial, he also served as Presiding Elder of the Nassau District for the Bahamas Conference, Chairman of the New York Conference Board of Trustees, and Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors for the Harriet Tubman Home, Inc.
Invited twice as the Morning Preacher for the Hampton Ministers Conference, Bishop Moore is known among his peers and associates as an anointed preacher and a leader with a shepherd's heart. He has been inducted into the prestigious Morehouse College Martin Luther King, Jr., Board of Preachers and the Mt. Vernon High School Hall of Fame. As a community leader, he was elected to two consecutive terms as President of the Mount Vernon Board of Education while pastoring one of the largest and fastest growing congregations in Westchester County. Bishop Moore also served as President of the United Black Clergy of Westchester, the Founding Chairperson for Save Our Seed Ministries, and a member of the Westchester County African American Advisory Board. He is President of the Greater Centennial Community Development Corporation and Greater Centennial Homes where he led in the construction of the James Varick Homes for 1st time homebuyers and a $12 million substantial renovation of Greater Centennial Homes.
Bishop Moore is a member of the Executive Committee for the World Methodist Council and on the Board of Trustees for Livingstone College. A recipient of the James Varick "Leadership Medallion" for exceptional service to the AME Zion Church, and the Lyman Beecher Award for Preaching from Yale University, he is recognized as a leading voice for community transformation. He is the co-author of Body and Soul: Conversations with your Physician and Pastor; and his sermons have been published in The African American Pulpit Magazine and the Balm In Gilead Anniversary Publication.
Elected the 99th Bishop in line of succession at the 49th Session of the AME Zion Church on July 20, 2012, Bishop Moore was assigned as the presiding prelate of the Western Episcopal District which encompasses the Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, and Southwest Rocky Mountain Annual Conferences. He is also the Episcopal Leader for the North Carolina Conference after the passing of the Presiding Prelate James E. McCoy.
A loving and faithful husband to Devieta, a caring father to Daron, Dana and Dion and God's good shepherd in the body of Christ, Bishop Moore understands the call upon the church to be a relevant force for good in society declaring; "It is our outreach that validates our up reach."