LDS Church Loosens Rules On Email for Missionaries

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — The Mormon church's strict rules about email communication for missionaries have been loosened a bit. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints said on Wednesday that missionaries can now send emails to friends, priesthood leaders and new converts.

Previously, missionaries could only email immediate family members. They've always been allowed to send written letters to friends and others. LDS spokesman Eric Hawkins says missionaries must get permission from their mission president before sending emails to converts or people of the opposite gender under the new rules.

Missionaries are still restricted to sending emails through the church's filtered email service and on the designated preparation day each week. Emails must also be sent from public computers at somewhere like a library where a fellow missionary can see the screen.