H. L. Mencken was for a long time the editor of the American Mercury magazine. One day he startled his employees by suddenly shouting, “It’s coming in the doors!” Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked at their boss.

“It’s up to the bottom of the desk!” Mencken continued, “It’s up to the seats of our chairs.”

“What are you talking about?” asked one of his confused colleagues.

“It’s all around us. Now, it’s to the top of our desks,” shouted Mencken as he jumped to the top of his desk.

“What do you mean?” inquired the newsroom staff.

“Mediocrity. We’re drowning in mediocrity!” Mencken shouted as he jumped from his desk and exited, never to return. (1)

I know how he felt. We live in a time of moral and spiritual mediocrity. All around us are mediocre institutions and mediocre …