You make a very good point in your post about how religion portrayed within popular culture can lead to negative biases and stereotypes. I think the ridicule about the Jonas Brothers and their purity rings had more to do with people's skepticism about the Jonas Brothers actually keeping their promise of abstinence to God. Keeping such a promise is almost impossible in an industry that takes childhood/teen stars and rips them of their "clean image" and reinvents them as sex symbols as they depart from their childhood career and begin their adult career.
So many pop stars have made promises or statements about staying virgins only to later present themselves as sex symbols. I'm sure you all remember when Britney Spears first skyrocketed to fame and became the "princess of pop." She claimed to be a virgin and later on she departed from her good girl image and presented herself as a sex symbol with songs like "Slave 4 U," "I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman," "Gimme More," "Perfect Lover," and most recently her album, "Femme Fatale." During a performance of her song "Me Against the Music" Britney Spears shared a kiss with Madonna, which was yet another attempt to present her as a sex symbol.
So many celebrities choose sexuality and virginity as their public proclamation of being religious. It gets to the point where people just no longer believe these claims---we all expect that the celebrity will end up recanting their claim and wanting sexual liberation as they reach adulthood. I think it would be more beneficial for celebrities to make public proclamations of other ways of being devout, such as participating in charity, helping those in needs such as the homeless, and other benevolent ways of contributing to society.
And just as we all expected, the Jonas Brothers have ended up abandoning their purity rings. After Joe Jonas started dating actress Ashley Greene in September 2010, numerous gossip mags featured pictures of him no longer wearing his purity ring.
Personally, I think abstinence should be a personal and private matter. There are so many other ways to distinguish yourself as a Christian. There are far more important and influential elements of Christianity other than the lifestyle choice to remain abstinent until marriage.
Jessica Simpson is another example of a popstar whose sexuality began to play a large role in her public success. At first she presented herself as the daughter of a minister who envisioned sex as a sacred and private affair between herself and her husband. When she first entered the pop scene, Jessica Simpson publicly spoke out about being a self-proclaimed virgin. Unlike Britney Spears, Jessica Simpson took her vows of chastity until marriage seriously. Jessica Simpson's religious upbringing had a role in shaping her career in its early stages. She was first signed by a Christian label and performed in youth-conferences for Christian youth. After her very public marriage to Nick Lachey, Jessica Simpson reinvented her image and came out with an album called "In This Skin" that featured songs about losing her virginity and embracing her sexuality such as the song "Sweetest Sin." Since then Jessica Simpson has done numerous videos dancing provocatively in sexy clothing.
I think your point about Lady Gaga not being ridiculed for public identifying herself as a Christian isn't completely true, Lady Gaga has received much ridicule from members of religious groups, particularly from those in the Catholic community, for using Christian imagery in her songs and music videos.
Religious values involve many personal lifestyle choices and I think that no matter how popular one's lifestyle choice may be, there's always going to be people who are offended by it. These lifestyle choices are highly subjective and I think it would be more appropriate for pop stars to keep their lifestyle choices in regard to their sexuality private.
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