ATLANTA --- There are a few prerequisites for anyone applying to be a Freemason: You must be a man, you can't be a slave, you must have good character, and you must have faith in a supreme being.

Those broad rules have allowed the more progressive chapters in the centuries-old fraternal organization, such as Atlanta's Gate City Lodge No. 2, to fill their ranks with diverse members.

The chapter's leaders say racial harmony was threatened recently when other Freemasons sought to revoke the lodge's charter for allowing Victor Marshall, who is black, to join. The chapter sued the Grand Lodge of Georgia on June 18, claiming the charges are based on "racial animosity and hatred."

"I hope we'll be victorious and that Freemasonry will come out in a more powerful light," said Mr. Marshall, a 26-year-old Army reservist.

Race historically has been a source of division within the Freemasons. All-black lodges sprouted up across the country for decades as whites sought to ban blacks from joining the organization.

Masons adopted a code in the 1990s banning lodges from objecting to potential members based on race, color or religion.

The Georgia dispute arose in February when Mr. Marshall and other members visited a lodge in Savannah for a celebration. Some apparently were surprised that Mr. Marshall and other nonwhite members were at the event.

The state organization's leader, J. Edward Jennings, sent out a memo confirming Mr. Marshall was a legitimate member after a lodge in north Georgia requested an emergency meeting to discuss the situation, the lawsuit said.

The lawsuit claims members then filed "spurious" charges within the state organization against the Atlanta chapter's leader, Michael Bjelajac, claiming he violated the group's rules by allowing a nonwhite man into the group.