In 1993 Fr. Moses was living in Saint Louis, Missouri and serving as the pastor to
Christ the Good Sheppard Eastern Orthodox Church. It came to his attention that
large numbers of Ethiopian and Eritrean immigrants who, in seeking asylum from
their war torn nations, were relocated to St. Louis from the East African
refugee camp they had been forced into. While the move to the United States was
necessary for the survival of these peoples, they were often unfortunately
relocated into dangerous neighborhoods with violent issues of their own.

Fr. Moses noticed that they, like many other recent immigrant groups, lacked an
established cultural community that they could rely on for help with the
practical needs of adjusting to life in the United States and the spiritual
needs that could only be fulfilled in a supportive environment. The Berrys,
with the support of the church congregation, made every effort they could to
help these immigrant become comfortable in their new lives. They set up a kind
of free store in the church basement. Later, with the help of community
leaders, Fr. Moses established the area’s first Ethiopian and Eritrean cultural
center. 

The first ad hoc meeting of the Brotherhood of Saint Moses the Black, with 20 or so community members, was held
in the Berry’s living room. The organization was established with the broad
purpose of developing unity and brotherhood in the Ethiopian and Eritrean
communities, because even though violence and forced migration had pushed these
groups together, they had their own individual histories of war and aggression
with one another. Members of the organization began regularly attending church services at Christ the Good
Shepherd and Fr. Moses began to become known as the American spiritual father
of this growing immigrant community.

 As the Brotherhood grew, its outreach extended to diverse communities of African
descent in the United States, but its mission of developing unity and
brotherhood remains the same.