THEY called him M. Tout-Blanc, which means “Mr. All-White.” A resident of the Ivory Coast town of Dimbokro, Edmond had worn white clothes exclusively for the last 16 years! And if you asked Edmond why he wore only white, he would simply tell you that it was because he was obedient. But to whom​—or to what—​he did not say.

Edmond and the “Spirit of the Stream”

Some of Edmond’s earliest memories are those of accompanying his parents to a “sacred” mountain outside their village. Nearby was a stream where sacrifices of cattle and sheep were offered to please the spirit of the stream. People would come and consult this spirit for solutions to their problems. Everyone had heard emanating from the stream a voice that often gave them counsel.

Certain children in each family were said to have a special relationship with this spirit. Edmond was one of these, according to the fetish priest. He could, therefore, depend on the spirit to guide him. When Edmond became old enough to work, he would consult the spirit if it appeared that other workers were in line to get a promotion that he wanted. The spirit would tell him to offer a chicken or a sheep as a sacrifice. By thus appeasing the spirit, he was sure that “bad luck” would befall his colleagues. Edmond made fast progress and came to have a responsible position where he worked. Even his parents, recognizing his “special relationship,” would come to Edmond if they needed to contact the spirit.

Oddly enough, Edmond saw no conflict between practicing spiritism and Catholicism. At the Catholic Church that he regularly attended, pagan rites, such as the playing of sacred tam-tams (drums), were carried on side by side with “Christian” ritual.

Eventually, Edmond’s job brought him to the capital city, Abidjan. There he became interested in yet another spirit​—one his brother-in-law consulted regularly. This spirit, however, was associated with the lagoons and the ocean. They called it Mami-Wata. Near one of the lagoons was a secluded spot that Edmond would frequently visit in order to consult this spirit for advice.

One day, however, the spirit appeared to be perturbed. “What is the trouble?” Edmond asked. The spirit complained that Edmond’s brother-in-law was no longer coming to consult him. “Why?” asked Edmond. He was told that it was because of his brother-in-law’s new religion. Edmond was intrigued, for he was a Catholic, and the spirit had never complained about that. There had to be something different about this new religion. Soon Edmond was to be visited by a member of this religion, and his days of consulting Mami-Wata would also come to an end.

All three men had come in contact with Jehovah’s Witnesses. Through a Bible study with the Witnesses, they learned the origin of the spirits. The Bible showed that before the Noachian Flood, angels rebelled against God and materialized so as to enjoy sexual relations with women. The Flood forced the spirits to dematerialize, and they have been trapped in the spirit realm ever since. No wonder these demons place so much emphasis on material objects, such as fetishes!​—Genesis 6:1-5; 2 Peter 2:4.

In time each of these three men built up a love for Jehovah God and a hatred for spiritistic practices. The Bible quite explicitly condemns seeking contact with wicked spirits, saying at Deuteronomy 18:10-12: “There should not be found in you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, anyone who employs divination, a practicer of magic or anyone who looks for omens or a sorcerer, or one who binds others with a spell or anyone who consults a spirit medium or a professional foreteller of events or anyone who inquires of the dead. For everybody doing these things is something detestable to Jehovah, and on account of these detestable things Jehovah your God is driving them away from before you.” Not wanting Jehovah’s disfavor, the three of them now followed the advice of the Christian disciple James: “Subject yourselves, therefore, to God; but oppose the Devil, and he will flee from you.”​—James 4:7.

Breaking free from religious captivity was not easy, however. Edmond, for example, had to burn amulets that apparently linked him to Mami-Wata. But he made fine progress thereafter, even dedicating his life to God and being baptized in symbol of this. Then, just one week after his baptism, the spirits began to bother him. Voices told him to quit this newfound faith. But Edmond prayed and called on the name of Jehovah. Eventually the wicked spirits ceased harassing him.​—Proverbs 18:10.

The experiences of these three former captives of superstition confirm that the Word of God is able to work mightily on those who come to believe. (1 Thessalonians 2:13; Acts 19:18-20)