I take the masons with a grain of salt. All institutions are human, and all of them have their flaws.
The masonic orders can often be traced back to the religion honoring Prometheus, the titan who stole fire from the Gods (to give to man) and loved to fuck with Zeus (almost something of a Veles or Loki type character, but less chaotic/malevolent). Depending on how you rationalize it, you can even track it back to the Zoroastrian cults and those who would come to identify themselves under the Star of Venus - the Light Bearer.
The masonic lodges came out of the medieval era, but the teachings they were founded under are far, far older and reflected in other organizations.
I don't dislike what they are supposed to be - I liken myself to Prometheus in a sense - I have a soft spot for humans and like to poke the proverbial bear and make gods expose the flaws in their minds, bodies, or rule.
However, while I call governments the Pantheon for a valid reason, many of the secret societies have become the same, just in the shadows. They let some people have knowledge, and other people go without it - they use that access and control to aggrandize themselves and rule over their fellows.
If they thought they were following either Prometheus or the Morning Star… Then they are mistaken. Not to say that all of them are bad, or even that all of them are selfish/greedy. It's just the trend of fraternal orders and they need to be reminded that their asshole is faggot, so to speak.