Binney

Binney, Thomas, was born at Newcastle-on-Tyne in 1798, and began life in a bookseller's shop. In 1824, having entered the Congregational ministry, he became pastor of Newport, Isle of Wight, whence he was invited in 1829 to the Weigh House chapel, near London Bridge. Here he founded a solid and deserved reputation, and gradually became the recognised leader of the Nonconformists as a body. Though strongly opposed to a State church, he was a man of broad culture and liberal sympathies, so that he lived on friendly terms with his ecclesiastical adversaries. He visited the United States, Canada, and Australia, and continued preaching vigorously until 1871, when he retired. His influence was directed towards improving the external qualities of Congregational services, and to that end he wrote The Service of Song in the House of the Lord. Among his other books the most popular are, Is it Possible to make the Best of both Worlds? and Money, a Popular Exposition in Rough Notes. He died in 1874.