Questions for "Our Role(s) as Christians on Atheist Forums"

[Angrboda]

why can't they be both?

Well for one thing, if you calculate the size of the Holy City literally according to the number of cubits, the top floors would be above the earth's atmosphere and it would be so massive that it would throw the entire earth off balance. So unless John was seeing some kind of George Jetson space tower, it seems more plausible to assume that John was providing a spiritual meaning by means of physical metaphors.

are you talking about revelation 21?

In my bible it opens with:
 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth. The first heaven and the first earth had disappeared. Now there was no sea. 2 And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem,[a] coming down out of heaven from God. It was prepared like a bride dressed for her husband.

Clearly we are talking about a new place, a "new Heaven and a New Earth" this new earth has no sea. that does not describe Earth now. So then why can't the new city spire extended beyond the boundaries of the old earth?

You do realize that the question of whether there is a breathable atmosphere at a given height above the surface is directly related to how strong the force of gravity is, and the amount of atmosphere present, don't you?  If you increase those two to make life livable at the top, you end up making things unlivable at the bottom.