However, as we shall see, this prohibition was frequently circumvented. Not long before the Spanish Expulsion, Rabbi Shelomo b. Shimon Duran(Rashbash, 1400-1467) of Algeria , was asked about conversion of the conversos(Marranos) and their descendants to Judaism . In his responsum, he quotes the accepted halakhah that it is forbidden to accept a person who wishes to convert to Judaism for any kind of ulterior motive. Nevertheless, the Rashbash, claimed that"this prohibition applies only to a goi, (i.e., a gentile without Jewish ancestors) who wishes to convert. However, if the candidate is one of the anusim(Marranos) or their descendants, we do not reject them because or an ulterior motive. Rather, it is our obligation to draw them near and bring them under the wings of the shekhinah(the Diving Presence).
The Tosafot* query: If conversion may not be allowed for an ulterior motive, how could Hillel the Elder have accepted the person who came to him with the demand:"Convert me so that I might be High Priest." These Talmudic commentators answer that
Hillel was certain that this gentile could eventually convert for the sake of Heaven. This was also the case of the Roman courtesan who wished to convert to Judaism in order to marry a yeshivah student of the third century Palestinian Amora, Rabbi Hiyya, the head of the academy, who accepted her because he was positive that she would become a sincere convert.’
How can one determine the intent, kavannah of the prospective convert to accept fully a Jewish way of life, the key to a sincere, valid conversion. How may we validate the candidate’s sincerity, which is a"matter of the heart," part of his/her inner being, thoughts and conscience that are not readily apparent. R. Joseph Caro tells us that it is one of the responsibilities and powers of the Rabbinical Court to judge whether the candidate will indeed become a sincere convert to Judaism and concludes:"You must learn that everything depends upon the judgement of the Bet Din."
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