Well clearly both of our impressions and stories are subjective and anecdotal. I doubt Opus Dei or the LT's would allow any independant researcher access to Opus Dei or LT adherents except under very controlled circumstances.
Actually, Opus Dei has been very open with the media about what they do, and what they believe in. The media doesn't want to believe the truth, just like they secretly want to believe that the Freemasons rule the world. The only unusual thing about Opus Dei is the nutballs who wear cilices. And there are very few of those. It is not a requirement, just a weird tradition that evolved from people wearing hair shirts for the same purpose.