A new collection of photographs by Michael Stokes seeks to shine a spotlight on courage, sacrifice, and strength of United States' veterans. The controversial photo depicts an injured veteran named BT Urruela posing with his arms outstretched and his body suspended in air, in a pose mean to recall the crucifixion of Jesus.  

The 'Always Loyal' Kickstarter project, which will produce a coffetable book of Stokes' photographs of veterans injured in combat, was fully funded almost immediately, with its initial goal of $45,000 raised eclipsed by a monstrous $300,000 in actual funds donated. But one image in particular, titled "Taylor with Ropes," has some Christian audiences feeling uncomfortable. 

One could argue that Michael Stokes' photographs were certainly not produced with Christian viewers in mind. A fitness photographer based out of LA, Stokes tends to glorify the masculine form with photos that are explicit and erotic in their nature. However, his new project will ineviteably draw attention from all kinds of audiences as it strikes on an issue that, for the most part, Americans tend to love supporting: wounded combat veterans. 

The photo's subject, Taylor "BT" Urruela, is a fitness model, motivational speaker, and performance coach in addition to being a brand representative for VET Sports, which he co-founded, according to his personal website. Frequently featured on book covers and in magazine photo shoots, Urruela says that doing his first photo shoot with Stokes in late 2014 was "a dream come true."

Originally, the "Taylor With Ropes" photo was planned as the single cover image for the coffee table book that Stokes has planned for the project. But the provocative image created an uproar among some that had otherwise supported the project. "75% of people loved it, some people said no so we decided to do two covers. You can go to Kickstarter and order the cover with the crucifixion image," Stokes told E! Online.