Once in New York, Levine became the rabbi of Congregation Nusach Ari in the Bronx. Rabbi Shraga Feivel Mendlowitz, head of Mesivta Torah Vodaas, studied the Tanya with Levine and encouraged his mesivta students to visit him so they could see this luminary. Many of them were inspired and decided to become followers of the Malach, starting a Hasidic quasi-dynasty known as "The Malachim." They began to adopt a more Hasidic style of dress, including "long black jackets and a very long "tallis katan" over their shirts, with the "tzitzit" showing below their jacket hems". When the Malachim openly challenged Mendlowitz's authority, they were barred from entering the mesivta by older students and in 1936, left Torah Vodaas to establish their own yeshiva called Nesivos Olam. (According to Nesanel Quinn, the then "menahel" (director), they left on their own. However, according to Rabbi Meir Weberman, one of the Malach's followers, Quinn expelled them but later apologized.) In any case, Rabbi Mendlowitz had asked Rabbi Yehoshua Baumol (1880–1948) to confirm the permissibility of expelling them after it was done. Rabbi Baumol replied with a formal responsum that it was justified by Jewish Law to expel the few to better serve the education of the many. The same question was presented to Rabbi Dov Berish Elefant, who responded that they should not be expelled.