LDS establishing country Web sites

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is now establishing country-specific Web sites as part of a major step toward expanding its Internet presence worldwide.

Eight of those sites are now in operation in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Denmark and Chile. Several more will be added before the end of the year.

According to Elder W. Rolfe Kerr of the First Quorum of the Seventy, members and others seeking information about the church outside the United States will have a much easier time finding it on these official Web sites being hosted in their own countries.

The sites, managed locally by area presidencies, will link to translated content on the church's official Web sites, such as www.lds.org, and provide local news, history, events and other information about the church in the host country.

The first site was launched in Chile in August. All country Web sites will enjoy added visibility as LDS headquarters' sites link to them, creating a worldwide network of official church sites.

The official country Web sites can be found at www.lds.org/countries.