Teleophobia
When it comes to phobia words, it seems like there's just too many of them. Most of them can be used as excuses to get out of something undesirable. Take, for instance, dodging the chore of pulling weeds because—arachnophobia! the fear of spiders. And then there's "teleophobia," which is commonly known as a fear of plans, not planes—plans. Now, it's not my intent to disparage anyone who suffers from this phobia. However, it's hard not to imagine that acute cases of this condition probably spike when plans of spouses, partners, or significant others are impending.
Actually, according to Wiktionary, the word "teleophobia" is originally defined as a "reluctance or refusal to ascribe purpose to natural phenomena" and comes from blending the words "teleological" and "phobia." "Teleological" relates to the goal or purpose of a thing or phenomenon, and "phobia" means fear. "Teleophobia" was coined in the 1860s by German-speaking Karl Ernst von Baer who was a naturalist and biologist and a contemporary of Charles Darwin. He was initially skeptical of Darwin's theory of evolution based on natural selection but later agreed with it. As I understand it, von Baer vigorously favored the idea that there was a degree of purpose in evolution. However, he was in the minority among his peers, and that's probably when he came up with the word "teleophobia," to identify those purpose-denying scientists who were critical of him.
Additionally, "teleophobia" is also known as a fear of religious ceremonies. The online Urban Dictionary's definition includes "fear of things ending" and "fear of religious ceremonies." It further explains that most "religious ceremonies scare people who have teleophobia because they feel forced to participate or sit through it until the end."
Personally, I would stick to the Wiktionary definition since it may come in handy when discussing whether or not the phenomenon of life runs according to a purpose, goal, or plan. However, have no fear about utilizing all the other associated definitions of "teleophobia" as needed because at some point you're definitely going to want to get out of undesirable plans, especially ones that entail attending the religious ceremonies of your in-laws. ∎
Sources:
Haig, David, "Hyperextended Synthesis," Static 1 Squarespace, https://static1.squarespace.com/static/53e41e40e4b08bfde27abc65/t/6363ee22c56eed5cf5afb7f4/1667493424494/Hyperextended+synthesis.pdf (accessed September 1, 2023).
Urban Dictionary contributors, "teleophobia," Urban Dictionary, https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=teleophobia (accessed September 1, 2023).
Wikipedia contributors, "Karl Ernst von Baer," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Karl_Ernst_von_Baer&oldid=1164906872 (accessed September 1, 2023).
Wiktionary contributors, "teleophobia," Wiktionary, https://en.wiktionary.org/w/index.php?title=teleophobia&oldid=75856816 (accessed September 1, 2023).
Thank you for reading my article. It amazes me that you would do so. My articles are always free, and in the future I might add a donation option because redistributing wealth is not a bad thing as long as it's done voluntarily.
Teleophobia is certainly the root cause of workaholism. Who wouldn't work their fingers to the bone to avoid hearing about, or participating in, your spouse's plans to redecorate, renovate, clean or paint?