Catholic Orders as Efficient Institutions

Abstract

In this essay, as an illustration of this approach, we examine the institutional efficiencies of the many different religious orders operating within the Catholic Church. In particular, we analyze orders as a particular case of Functional, Overlapping Competing Jurisdictions(FOCJ) that emerge from below as a reaction to pressing problems of the time, that require the development of new functionalities within society. We emphasize aspects of competition between orders, and how they overlap within a given territory. Another important aspect is that each Catholic order has its own laws and regulations, or constitution, i.e., each is a relatively autonomous.