In SGI, we have a daily practice of gongyo and chanting morning and evening. We are allowed, if not encouraged, to chant for stuff or personal enrichment. We are also allowed and encouraged to attend meetings with other SGI members where we discuss Nichiren’s Buddhism, our daily lives and, usually, some SGI politics. This how most of us started our relationship with Nichiren Buddhism.
Thousands, if not millions, of people only know the ways of the SGI. Some SGI members know of and maybe know a little about other Nichiren groups/sects/sangas, but have found their place in the SGI.
Then something happens. A “leader” says something or does something or doesn’t do something or doesn’t say something and some members become discouraged. These folks can’t seem to reconcile their feelings and begin to drift away from the SGI. They have a connection to Nichiren Buddhism, but believe they can go it alone or converse with like-minded people on the ‘net - they don’t need the SGI. In some cases, these groups/sects/sangas (g/s/s)are actually founded on how misguided the SGI is. The SGI doesn’t chant the right words or study the right stuff.