Megdal.jpg

Rabbi, Advocate


Warm Spiritual Presence


Scholar of Tradition

I serve as Associate Rabbi of Congregation Beth El in Bethesda, MD, after three years at Congregation Beit Simchat Torah in Manhattan. I bring a foundation of rigorous academic and professional experience as a Yale-trained attorney, a student of our rabbinic tradition who aspires to lead future halakhic decision-making, and an advocate for women’s and LGBTQ rights.

In this collective moment of healing and recovery, rabbis are called to engage with more intentionality and care. Whether leading from the bimah or at a hospital bedside, pastoral moments are when I am touched by the Divine. Using a pastoral approach of “Care-Being” — a term I coined to emphasize loving presence over care-giving — my chaplaincy in hospice and my student pulpit empowered me to confront spiritual challenges with empathy and grace.

As the granddaughter of a Holocaust survivor from Poland and the great-granddaughter of migrant farm laborers from Mexico, I am proud and overjoyed to have fulfilled my long-held dream of becoming a rabbi.

More About Rabbi Megdal

 

Senior Sermon

“There is wisdom that comes from moving through painful experience. Brokenness can heal, can scar, or stay broken — and can still grow into a new and miraculous wholeness.”