38 Preface وَالسّارِقُ وَالسّارِقَةُ فَاقطَعوا أَيدِيَهُما جَزاءً بِما كَسَبا نَكالًا مِنَ اللَّهِ ۗ وَاللَّهُ عَزيزٌ حَكيمٌYusuf AliAs to the thief,1 Male or female, cut off his or her hands: a punishment by way of example, from God, for their crime: and God is Exalted in power.Here we touch upon jurisprudence. The Canon Law jurists are not unanimous as to the value of the property stolen, which would involve the penalty of the cutting off of the hand. The majority hold that petty thefts are exempt from this punishment. The general opinion is that only one hand should be cut off for the first theft, on the principle that “if thy hand or thy foot offend thee, cut them off, and cast them from thee”, (Matt. 18:8). Apparently in the age of Jesus thieves were crucified, (Matt. 27:38).