Medieval crusade theorists read Luke’s two swords as justifying armed force

Evidence

Yet preaching is not the only way to combat error: When the apostles said to Jesus “behold, here are two swords,” he responded, “It is enough” (Luke 22:38). This means “that you should fight with preaching and with weapons against infidels.” — John V. Tolan, Saracens, 1336

Categorization

• DEFINE: Shows the two-swords doctrine being invoked to legitimate religious warfare alongside preaching.
• SEED: Potential essay on how a single biblical verse was weaponized to authorize crusade — genealogy of the two-swords exegesis through medieval canon law.
• XREF: connects to: Armed Christianity treats Jesus as a conqueror needing weapons — Andrew L. Whitehead, American Idolatry, 489