Thieves made off with a bronze Buddhist temple bell that had been sounded before morning services at the Papaaloa Hongwanji on Hawaii island for nearly a century. Is nothing sacred?

Sounding the bell has been part of the Wednesday routine at the temple since 1919. But not this past Wednesday, the day it was reported stolen to police.

Hongwanji members estimate the bell weighs between 150 to 200 pounds and is worth about $1,000 to $5,000. News of the bell heist has gone viral on the Internet and members hope that will lead to the relic’s safe return.

In the Buddhist tradition, karma — the sum of a person’s actions — leads to future consequences. The thieves might want to meditate on that and, as Buddha teaches, “refrain from taking that which is not given.”