What can you tell me about Freemasonry? (This is not a conspiracy theory thread)

The closer to the end of college I get, the more interested I get in service opportunities, networking, and generally finding ways to make myself into a more well-rounded individual.

I have always been interested in the Freemasons. I have ancestors who reached pretty high degrees in the fraternity, and my uncle was a Demolay, though he never entered the Masons because he just wasn’t interested.

Every time I’ve asked, I’ve always been told that the Masons “make good men better” and that if I am truly interested, I need to stop by a lodge to talk with the guys before a meeting. This seems rather vague to me, and I’ve never stopped by a lodge to talk, but I’m still interested in the opportunities the Masons could potentially provide.

This is where you come in, Fluther. I know that Fluther is a rather diverse community with a pretty deep pool of random knowledge, so I figure that someone out there has to have some kind of experience with the Masons either directly or indirectly. If someone on here is a member, I’d love to hear about anything you’d be willing to tell me about the fraternity. Additionally, I’d like anyone who knows anything about the Masons who also knows me as well as the internet will allow to tell me if they think it would be a good opportunity for me or not if I were to try and join.

Disclaimer: this is *NOT a conspiracy theory thread. I don’t want to hear about how the Masons and the illuminati are secretly planning to gas us all with chemtrails so six headed dragons from mars can take over the world. So spare me, please.