MacKay Memorial Hospital (Taipei, 1912)

On December 26, 1912, MacKay Memorial Hospital was established in Taipei as a living tribute to George Leslie Mackay (1844–1901), the Canadian Presbyterian missionary whose work in northern Taiwan united practical compassion with a clear gospel witness. In an era when modern medicine was limited and suspicion of outsiders could run high, Mackay’s willingness to serve the poor and the overlooked—often with few resources—became a quiet kind of heroism. His simple clinics treated illness, pulled diseased teeth, dressed wounds, and offered relief to suffering bodies while pointing to the Great Physician who heals the soul.

George Leslie Mackay and the Seed of Mercy

Mackay traveled through communities across northern Taiwan, meeting people where they were and refusing to reserve care for the influential. His ministry modeled the conviction that love must be visible and costly. “Little children, let us love not in word and speech, but in action and truth.” (1 John 3:18) Many who first encountered him through medicine later heard Scripture with open hearts, not because they were coerced, but because mercy had already spoken.

A Hospital Founded to Continue a Ministry

The Taipei hospital was founded to carry forward this Christlike pattern: serve the sick without favoritism, and train caregivers whose work would outlast any one personality. The institution’s Presbyterian roots were not merely administrative; they were spiritual, shaping an ethic of service that treated every patient as bearing God’s image. “Carry one another’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” (Galatians 6:2) In daily wards and clinics, that calling took form through nurses, physicians, and staff who learned to see medicine as a vocation of stewardship and neighbor-love.

Growth with a Clear Witness

From modest beginnings, MacKay Memorial Hospital grew into one of Taiwan’s largest medical centers, yet its founding purpose continued to press against mere prestige. The truest measure of greatness was not size, but faithful service—especially when inconvenient or costly. Its story reflects a steady truth: faith does not retreat from suffering; it enters it with courage, tenderness, and persevering hope. “Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me.” (Matthew 25:40)