I have been rather fascinated of late with the idea of swords that possess special qualities, whether they be magical or holy. It's interesting that these types of swords feature prominently in almost every one of my favorite fantasy tales, whether it be Caliburn/Excalibur, Sting, Narsil/Anduril, Esperacchius, Fidelacchius, and Amoracchius, the Sword of Truth, or Callandor.
I think that one reason this particular concept has stuck in my head is because in many ways, these swords all represent an interesting facet of all heroic tales - the importance of a good man to wield the sword and save the world. For instance, Caliburn can only be drawn from the rock by Arthur, the divinely appointed king (never mind which god or gods chose him - the point is that he was chosen). Or look at the three swords of the Knights of the Cross - if they are ever wielded except by the ones that God has chosen, or used in the wrong manner, they can lose their power altogether, but if wielded by a righteous man (or woman) in accordance with God's will, they possess immense power.
Callandor approaches this from a slightly different angle, as it can be wielded by good or evil, and is instead a tool to teach the limits of power, and the importance of not becoming consumed by it. And then you have the Sword of Truth, which can only be used against someone that you truly believe to be the enemy, and which is only fully under the Seeker's control after he has learned to release his anger, using it out of love for his enemies, rather than rage.
The sword itself is not the point, or the focus - it is the use to which it is put, and the manner in which the man who wields it approaches the battle.
So where am I going with this? To be honest, I was mostly just thinking about how cool an idea that is, but now that I've put on my critical thinking/writing hat, it turns out I've got a bit more to say than that (funny how that works...)
Sure, in our day-to-day lives, we aren't usually facing down foes with a magical sword, but that doesn't mean the main point doesn't still apply. We still face our own enemies, and often the enemy may be our own sinful nature, but God doesn't send us out there unarmed. We're given our armor, and our sword - truth, righteousness, faith, and salvation as protection, and the word of God and prayer as our weapons. But we cannot don this armor or use these weapons without first surrendering ourselves to God's will and having him cleanse our hearts.
Our weapons are useless, powerless, unless he is first, unless we use them for him and in line with his purposes. And of course we cannot accomplish even this on our own - we need him to save us - but with his help we can fight the battles of everyday life. And our sword may not shine with holy light, but when we wield it through the power of his righteousness given to us, we can withstand all evil, just like a hero in one of those stories.
