LDS Missionary Applications Increase

From the Daily Mail:

The Mormon church is bracing itself for a surge in the number of converts after applications for missionary work exploded by 471 per cent - with more than half coming from women.

Just two weeks ago the age limit for young men to be sent on full-time missions was reduced from 19 to 18 and the limit for young women from 21 to 19.

As a result of the move, the number of applications for training shot up from an average of 700 a week to 4,000 a week.

Currently the Church of Latter Day Saints has more than 58,000 missionaries around the world but women account for less than a fifth.