“Acknowledg[ing] the problems of Almighty God”:

A How Appealing reader points out this item about Chief Justice Rehnquist’s concurrence in the Pledge of Allegiance case:

At page ten of his opinion, the Chief Justice purports to quote President George Washington’s first Thanksgiving proclamation as follows:

Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the problems of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor. . . .

The use of the word “problems” in that quotation is, of course, an error. The word that President Washington actually used (see here and here) is “providence.”