An American Catholic priest known worldwide for his activism on peace and social justice has been dismissed from the international Jesuit religious order. Father John Dear has been arrested dozens of times for acts of civil disobedience against war and nuclear weapons. The South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu nominated him for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2008. The Jesuits say Dear was “obstinately disobedient” to their directives. Dear says his superiors have been trying to stop his activism over the course of his 32 years in the Jesuit order.