The Jonas Brothers, “The Bachelor,” and Our Culture’s Rejection of Sexual Purity

Perhaps the culture's aversion to the Christian sexual ethic is actually a rejection of its source.

Women across the country are celebrating the news: the Jonas Brothers are back together. Their latest album—which came out on June 7th—was preceded by the release of the trio’s Amazon documentary, “Chasing Happiness.” The film tells the story of the band’s ascent to stardom as they quickly went from playing in malls and at school assemblies to packing the house at Madison Square Garden.

The documentary captures a moving testimony. Viewers witness Nick, Joe, and Kevin experience a dynamic range of highs and lows as they relive their rise to fame and explore its impact on their lives as men today.

At a particularly vulnerable moment, the three open up about consequences born on their careers due to the impact of some rings they wore on their fingers in the early days.

Purity rings. The Jonas Brothers wore purity rings.

A symbol of sexual abstinence in Christian communities, most associate purity rings with a person’s decision to save sex for marriage.

But from the moment these three clean-cut pastor’s kids stepped on their first Disney stage, it was clear the media could not wait to pounce.

As Nick later came to realize, the rings quickly became “a defining factor of who [they] were as a band.” The brothers, from an early age, were well aware of the mockery being made of them across the country.

Russell Brand, as quoted in “Chasing Happiness” once publicly referred to the group as “God’s favorite virgins.” On her show “Chelsea Lately,” Chelsea Handler joked about the boys’ need for a six-bedroom home asking:, “Why do three virgins need six bedrooms?”

As if that wasn’t enough for three teenage boys to stomach, ...