In Mediterranean society, a woman’s testifying voice held relatively little persuasive value for listening audiences.
People possessed by demons (past or present) were not considered credible sources in Mediterranean society; their testimony held little persuasive value for typical audiences.
Full article [Forthcoming] weighs these 2 arguments:
This is relevant because Mary Magdalene, and some of Jesus’s other women followers, had a reputation of being formerly demon possessed.1
• Lk 8:2 — “Mary who was called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out”
• Mk 16:9 — “He first appeared to Mary Magdalene, from whom He had cast out seven demons.” [Note: Although this is the so-called false ending of Mark, it is still early.]